The Avenger
by FirePhoenix8
Summary: Yagami Raito's sheltered life gets torn away from him at the age of thirteen. He'll do anything to achieve his revenge, but will he become the equal partner or the enemy of the man he vouched to take revenge on? Light/L. Near,Mello,Matt,BB.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me; I only own this story and make no profit from this.

AN: this story will be based on the anime, since I have never read the manga. It's possible that there are some mistakes since I'm not versed in Japanese tradition and culture, and I'll always appreciate it if someone wants to correct me. Nevertheless, I'll try to make it as accurate as possible. Furthermore, some elements and characters of the manga might be included since there's a lot of information about the manga on the internet, and many things have captured my attention when I saw that the manga was much deeper and interesting than the anime. Regardless, this fic is an AU so many things will be different, though I'll take most elements from the anime.

Warning: this story will be slash, and it's rated as M because of it and due to language and violence. If there's an explicit slash scene, I'll put a warning like this one on the chapter. If the chapter doesn't contain explicit slash scenes, then I won't warn again about language and violence. THIS chapter does have violence, adult language, and non-explicit non-con scenes.

Note: it's implied, in this chapter, that the characters are speaking Japanese, though the dialogues are in English.

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**Chapter 1**

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_October 31, 1999_

A handsome, thirteen-year-old boy was gracefully seated in front of a computer, his chestnut eyes fixed on the screen with focused attention, while his long fingers deftly punched the keyboard.

Yagami Raito blew out a breath to flick an auburn lock of hair from his eyes, and his pouty lips curved upwards with satisfaction when he punched the last key. His computer screen briefly flickered black, before it glowed with green flashy letters; the screen being covered by masses of information, pictures and profiles.

The young boy smirked. He had just hacked into the NPA's database. He did it often and easily but this constituted one more victory for him, since his father, whilst being the Chief of the National Police Agency, still forbade him from studying criminal records and ongoing cases.

Yagami Soichiro upheld the belief that he was too young to get involved in police cases, and no amount of cajoling and smooth persuasions from Raito's part had dissuaded his father from that idea. Granted, he had subtlety manipulated his father into allowing him to help the Japanese Police Force once he turned fifteen, but that wasn't good enough, because frankly – he was bored.

He was the best student in Eishu Junior High School, and he was the most brilliant pupil at Gamou Prep Academy, where he took supplemental classes in advanced English, Math, Science, and Law. Given his test records since the age of five, he possibly had the most outstanding and brilliant mind in Japan. Furthermore, he had won several National Chess Contests and yesterday he had won his Junior High School Tennis Championship.

Nevertheless, everything bored him.

His classes were too easy, his classmates nowhere near his genius, he had no friends because he had never met anyone who could capture his attention with intelligent conversation, and he regarded everyone else to be too inane, ignorant and foolish. Nothing and no one seemed to be challenging enough for him; not even his parents.

Admittedly, he cared for them in a mild sort of way, but they were uninteresting as well. His father was the Chief of the NPA but never revealed much about his work, and that was the only thing remotely interesting about the man, in his opinion.

Therefore, since last year, Raito had taken the matter into his own hands, hacking into police databases, not only from Japan but from other countries as well.

Every night before dinner, he accessed databases and studied ongoing cases. Then, his brilliant mind pieced information and clues together, coming to conclusions about the case and the identity of the criminal. Following, he would send untraceable emails with tidbits of information which would help the investigators realize who had committed the crime, or he pointed out specific details which would help them solve the case.

This was his hobby and the only thing that brightened his tedious existence.

He had started doing it since last year. His identity as an informant hadn't been discovered yet, since he always sent his emails under the pseudonym of Y, and he always redirected his emails through several worldwide servers so that they couldn't be traced back to him.

And Raito loved every second of it, since it was his ambition to become a worldwide famed detective, so that he could capture criminals and clean the world from filth, just like his father did. Only that he wanted to do it more gracefully, slyly and efficiently.

He had a strong sense of justice, thanks to the teachings of his father, but he also considered himself to be vastly cleverer and more cynical, and thus, he knew that criminals should be dealt with utter ruthlessness.

Raito carded his fingers through his silky, auburn hair, rearranging it to make sure that it was neatly fixed, as always. Then he gracefully leaned back on his chair, his gaze intently reading the information displayed on his computer screen. It pertained to the case his father was currently working on, and he had already sent the NPA several emails with his conclusions regarding the killings.

About a month ago, a string of seemingly unrelated murders had rattled Tokyo, but it had been easy for him to conclude that the Yakuza were behind it. Several well-known businessmen, owners of 'entertainment' houses, and low-profile thugs had been killed with a clean shot to the head, after their hearts had been cut out from their chests.

It was clear to him that Japan's largest crime syndicate was behind the killings and he had already sent his anonymous conclusions to the NPA, but his satisfied smirked dropped when his gaze landed on the last sentence of the case's file.

The case was closed. Apparently, yesterday, the NPA had broken into the Red Dragon's Tokyo headquarters and captured several yakuza, albeit not the leader, since the man hadn't been found.

That wasn't what angered him, since it filled him with gleeful joy that he had been right. What rubbed him the wrong way was that the NPA had acted under Eraldo Coil's orders, and not because of the information provided by 'Y' – by him.

Raito's fists clenched with anger. This wasn't the first time that Eraldo Coil had solved a case at the same time he did, and it wasn't the first time that the worldwide-famed detective was acknowledged for it, instead of him.

Despite all the emails he had sent under his pseudonym of Y, police task forces around the world still didn't publicly acknowledge Y's genius or existence. His anonymous email account for Y still didn't receive requests for his help to resolve cases. The FBI, CIA, Interpol, and other agencies still just sought out help from the three best detectives of the world; the mysterious L, Eraldo Coil, and Denueve.

Who were these people and why wasn't Y sought out by police forces around the world, after all the aid he had already provided?

Raito sighed with angered frustration. Well, he was young, he had time to elevate Y's fame to public knowledge and acclaim, and to surpass the other three detectives.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of the main front door being opened and his father's muffled, stern voice reached his ears, accompanied by his sister's buoyant greeting.

Raito quickly logged out from the NPA's database, and he approached a mirror. He smoothed any wrinkles from his shirt, neatly arranged his impeccably groomed hair, and gazed at his reflected image, his lips curving with satisfaction.

His body was athletic and lean, his face was incredibly handsome, his skin smooth and unblemished with a golden, sun-kissed hue, his auburn hair glossy and silky, and his almond-shaped caramel eyes soft and amiable without revealing his sharp, sly cunning – just as he wanted them to be, since this was the mask he always presented to others.

The pride he took in his breath-taking good looks was not that of a narcissist but rather of one who knew well what power it conferred him over others. He had had ample proof of it throughout his life: how it always made him popular with both girls and teachers without needing to work on it, how he instantly became the focus of attention when he entered a room, how others vied for his interest or opinions.

No matter who it was -girls in his Junior High School that flocked around him, and blushed when giving him bento lunch boxes or coyly giggled when amassing to watch him practice tennis in the school's sporting courts, or even teachers who always picked him first in class to answer a question when he rose his hand- they all saw the beauty first, and reacted to it as everyone did, with admiration, covetousness, and a desire to always be in his presence.

Raito didn't complain. It was the way of the world, and he fully milked it for all it was worth. People were mindless sheep, superficial in the extreme no matter how smart or profound they believed themselves to be, fawning over and pricing handsomeness much more than actual intelligence.

That his own astounding handsomeness was only surpassed by his unparalleled genius was what made him a god amongst fools. And no, he didn't think his egotism was blown out of proportion. It was simply a fact.

He checked himself on the mirror once more and then began to gracefully amble towards his door. However, it was wrenched open before his hand could reach the doorknob, and an energetic little bundle of buoyancy rushed inside.

"Onii-san, father's home!" excitedly said the ten-year-old girl, grabbing Raito's hand and attempting to pull him after her. "Dinner is ready and we're going to celebrate your tennis championship victory!"

"Sayu-chan," said Raito sternly, inspecting his little sister while his lips quirked with fondness, "you should behave like a proper young lady and knock before entering my room."

Sayu spun around, her pigtails bobbing in the air, and she huffed indignantly while crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't want to be a proper lady, onii-san. You're the model son in this family, not me." She stuck out her tongue, and her brown eyes sparkled with mutinous mischievousness. "I'm the rebel."

Raito held in an amused, reluctant chuckle, and ruffled her hair.

As all little sisters around the world, she was a pest to her big brother: always careening into his bedroom, touching his things, being nosy and bossy, asking him about which girl at school was his girlfriend, if he thought she was pretty too, or wanting to gossip about this celebrity or that.

Yes, Sayu was a pest, but she had potential too.

His little sister was the only person he truly cared about and perhaps even loved. She was an annoying spitfire, but fun to irk and taunt. And most importantly, he looked forward for her to grow up and become more interesting.

Certainly, she wasn't a brilliant genius as he was, but she showed some promise if her mischievousness could be guided to become sharpness of mind.

Sayu impatiently stomped her foot on the floor, and grabbed his hand. "Don't mess with my hair, onii-san. And let's go, I'm starving!"

Raito let out a loud sigh to convey irritation, masking his indulgent amusement, and followed her towards the staircase which led to the first floor of their home.

Abruptly, a strident crashing noise resounded from the ground floor, followed by an alarmed, urgent yell, "SACHIKO TAKE OUR CHILDREN AND FLEE!"

Raito hardly knew what happened next. There were screams, yells, the sound of furniture being wrecked, accompanied by sounds of forceful struggling and the rushing of feet.

Alarmed, he instinctively pulled his sister behind him, his gaze frantically inspecting his surroundings. His father's command had been clear, they had to leave the house, someone was attacking them.

He quickly made up his mind and lifted his little sister –who was screaming and crying, frightened and confused- into his arms, and he swiftly rushed towards his parent's bedroom.

Just when he opened the door, he saw, from the corner of his eyes, how his mother stumbled out from the staircase. Her clothes were disheveled and torn, and her gentle face was streaked with tears, her expression terrified.

She rushed to them, while sounds of struggling still came from the ground floor, as she yelled frenziedly, "Raito, into the bedroom! We have to-"

Suddenly, he heard a piercing scream of pain and his father's voice enragedly shouting about revenge and justice, followed by the clear sound of a gunshot.

Then came the 'thud' of a body crashing to the floor, his father's voice was heard no more, and a deathly silence encompassed the house.

Raito's eyes widened, his mind swirling in a frenzied fog. Distantly, he heard his sister crying and whimpering, and his mother wretchedly choking on sobs.

Abruptly, a commanding voice was heard coming from the ground floor, and Raito pushed all frightened thoughts to a side and he rushed into action. He tightened his arm around his little sister and pulled his mother into his parent's bedroom.

Quickly, he settled Sayu on her feet and he pulled a chair under the door handle, to lock it. He turned around and saw his mother still sobbing, though she had rushed towards a nightstand, opening the little door, revealing a security box.

Raito understood immediately, she was frantically entering the code to open it, since inside laid the gun his father kept at home.

Instantly, he sharply told Sayu to be quiet and he propelled into action; they had to leave the house, somehow. He rushed towards the large window and quickly grabbed an armchair, smashing it into the glass panes.

He felt some glass shards piercing his skin, but only faintly and distantly, his mind too detachedly clear and focused to acknowledge pain. Swiftly, he spun around to grab Sayu; they would have to jump through the window, there was no other choice. Hopefully, the fall wouldn't break any of their bones.

Sayu was now openly crying, though her terrified sobs were silent, and his mother now stood in front of the locked door, her face pale, strained, and drenched with tears, her hands trembling, grasping a gun aimed forward.

Raito grabbed his sister, pulling her towards the window, but before he could do anything else, several gun shots were heard and the door of the bedroom rattled and splintered. Quickly, it was being brought down by fierce kicks and more gun shots.

His mother let out a horrified, alarmed whimper, and her eyes snapped to his, while she whispered in a quiet, broken voice, "Hide, Raito, and protect your sister."

Raito's gaze urgently glanced around, flickering to the smashed window, turning gauging. They wouldn't have time to jump and the fall itself could damage them enough to leave them splattered on the ground, easy targets for the killers.

He instantly made up his mind and fiercely shoved Sayu under the large bed, following her and tightly wrapping his arms around her, pressing a palm against her quivering lips to silence her.

He didn't know if his choice had been the right one; probably, he should have stood beside his mother. But on the other hand, he needed to gain some time to decide how to escape from the situation, and he had to take care of Sayu.

Without him by her side, his little sister would be crying too hard and she would give herself away. Not that their current position was a smart hiding place, but it was either under the bed or inside a closet, and none of those options were good ones.

Raito inwardly cursed. He should have taken the gun, even though he didn't know how to use one. Hopefully, his mother would shoot as much as she could.

Abruptly, the door was wrecked open, and he forced himself to breathe evenly and quietly, while he saw two pair of legs entering the room.

"Well, what do we have here?" said a mocking, harsh voice, laced with amused cruelty. "Yagami-san's little wife. We could have some fun with her, don't you think?"

"I think we should," replied another voice, gruff, hoarse, and taunting, "Look how she trembles." The man let out a vicious laughter. "Is that gun supposed to scare us, slut?"

"Don't move," said his mother's sobbing voice. "Don't move or I'll shoot."

"You're going to shoot us, bitch?" jeered one of the men, snidely cackling. "I don't think so. We're going to have some fun with you and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. We'll have you moaning like an alley whore."

It happened so quickly that Raito didn't have time to do anything. He saw the legs of the men advancing, his mother cried out, and he saw her gun falling to the floor, far away from the bed.

Under the bedspring, Raito's eyes widened with alarm and he immediately pressed his hand tighter against Sayu's mouth, covering her ears with an arm.

He was frozen in place and didn't know what to do. He should wait a bit longer before acting. He cleared his mind and forced himself to think clearly, detachedly and coldly. There was no other way, he should wait until the men were busy with his mother, and then he would come out, grab the gun and threaten the men.

He felt Sayu trembling against his chest, her terrified tears soaking the hand he had pressed against her mouth, but there was little he could do to offer her comfort or reassurance.

Then, abruptly, he heard his mother yell, her legs disappeared from his line of sight and a body was forcefully pushed on the bed, the weight sinking the mattress above him.

Raito clenched his jaw with blazing fury when he saw one the men's legs disappear from his sight, more weight added on the bed, since the man had certainly climbed on it. But the other man's legs were still visible - that man was standing a few feet away from the bed, watching what his partner did.

His mother's cries, sobs, and screams reached new heights, and Raito gritted his teeth so tightly that he was sure they would break. He felt a mantle of coldness wrap around him while he heard his mother's struggles. He heard the ripping of clothes, the sharp sound of a zipper being pulled down, the snickers of the man who was attacking his mother, and the vicious laughter of the other who observed.

Raito's felt as if his heart was freezing, he felt completely impotent, ripped from any sense of control, and he hated it.

And like a mantra, he coldly repeated to himself that he couldn't act yet. The other man was observing, if he came out from the bed, he would be instantly attacked. He had to wait… he had to wait until that man was busy as well…

His mother shrieked, her voice laced with agony, as the mattress above him began to sink as if someone was pounding into it, grunts and moans were heard, now meshed with his mother's sobs and whimpers and with the other man's cackling.

It seemed to go on forever, the viciously delighted moans, the cruel laughter, his mother's broken sobs, the pounding of thrusts… and with each passing second, Raito felt a fist of coldness coiling and tightly clutching his chest.

His eyes were wide and unseeing, his heartbeat low, his breathing forcefully quiet and even, while he pressed his little sister tighter against himself, trying to muffle the terrible sounds from her ears, as he repeatedly told himself that he had to wait… he had to wait…

Finally, a last grunt of pleasure reverberated in the bedroom, his mother's sobs were now a quiet, agonizing whimper, and Raito saw how the legs of the man who had observed the rape approached the bed.

"Do you want to fuck this slut now? She's no beauty but her cunt is tight enough."

"Hm," said the man who approached the bed. "We should look for the brats. The boss ordered that we had to kill the whole family."

"Come now," interjected the other man with a hoarse bout of laughter. "We'll have fun with the brats later. Enjoy this bitch. We can fuck her at the same time."

Raito briefly closed his eyes, his jaw clenching tightly, but he impelled himself to wait. Sayu was with him and he just needed the other man to get on the bed, then he would act and help his mother…

"At the same time, you say?" said one man, his voice cruelly amused while considering the option. "Nah, I'm bored already. And I'm tired of the whore's whines."

Raito's eyes flew open, alarmed and frenzied, his muscles tensing, and he was about to jump into action when a clear gunshot loudly resounded throughout the room.

Sayu froze by his side, but he didn't look at her - his eyes simply widened, their expression empty and haunted while he felt the mattress above them still, his mother's whimpers no longer heard.

Distantly, he heard the voices of the two men, their tone viciously amused and congratulatory, as he felt something wet and slick sliding on his face.

Frozenly, Raito touched his cheek and then gazed at his fingertips, stained with blood that wasn't his. More drops splat on his face and he felt his hair plastering and drenching.

With wide eyes, he gazed upwards, and saw how the mattress was rapidly being covered by dark red patches – his mother's blood.

He felt that cold grasp around his chest relentlessly tightening, his emotions muted as if petrified. He had miscalculated; he had thought that the other man would join his partner. He had calculated and he had been wrong… And now his mother was dead… along with his father…

But he couldn't allow himself to think about that, he couldn't afford it.

Raito's jaw clenched and his eyes came back into focus, narrowing with chilly assessment.

He had to act now, before Sayu and he were discovered... He saw two pairs of legs now, the men calmly walking around the room, opening closets and inspecting the broken window… They would soon check under the bed…

Without a glance towards his sister, who now laid unmoving by his side, Raito immediately lurched forwards from under the bed.

The men instantly spun around, yelling at him, but Raito didn't pay any attention and he dived to the floor, instantly grasping the gun his mother had dropped when attacked.

Swiftly, he jumped to his feet and aimed the gun at them, his arms extended and stiff, his grip firm.

The two men had their guns aimed back at him, and Raito felt a flare of overwhelming rage and hatred, but he forced himself to inspect them, and to analyze the situation, coldly.

The men looked like thugs, heavily muscled, one of them with a long scar marring his face. Nevertheless, what caught Raito's attention was the large tattoo one of the men displayed. It had to be the man who had raped his mother, since his zipper was still down and his shirt had been discarded, revealing a heavily scarred chest that displayed a tattoo along his right arm and shoulder: a highly detailed red dragon.

And then, Raito understood. The men were part of the Red Dragon crime syndicate, the yakuza that had been attacked yesterday by his father and the NPA team, following Eraldo Coil's orders.

This was the yakuza's retaliation for having their Tokyo headquarters discovered and raided, but this was also because the NPA hadn't killed them, just arrested them without finding their leader. These thugs had either escaped the attack or they hadn't been at the syndicate's headquarters.

"Oh, look at this," jeered one of the men, the one who must have been observing how his mother was raped and who had finally shot her, since he was still completely dressed. The disgusting man licked his lips, leering at him. "What a pretty, little boy you are. I didn't know that Yagami had spawned something so beautiful-"

"Shut up," gritted out Raito, his voice tight and cold while he still aimed at the men. "Don't move a toe or I'll shoot-"

The other man, the rapist, viciously cackled. "Just what your whorish mother said, ain't it? Didn't do her any good, though. So drop the gun, brat, and we'll go easy on you."

"Yes," said the other man, his leer intensifying while his gaze travelled along Raito's body. "I'll have some fun with you, boy. You're more my taste." He smirked, and said with cruel mock, "But I'll be gentle and I'll kill you quickly afterwards if you please me, boy." His eyes snapped to his partner's, as he added sharply, "Get the girl. The boy came from underneath the bed, so Yagami's little daughter must be there-"

"Don't!" yelled Raito, aiming his gun at the man who had moved towards the bed. "Leave her alone or I'll-"

"Shoot you?" taunted the tattoed man, his voice dripping with vicious derision. "I bet you don't even know how to do it."

It happened so quickly that Raito didn't even blink. The man leaped towards the bed, quickly pulling out a petrified Sayu, and Raito's finger instantly pressed the trigger…

But nothing happened, just a 'click' was issued by the gun he was firmly gripping, and Raito's frantic eyes gazed down at the weapon.

The leering man let out a cruel cackle of laughter. "The little boy doesn't know how to use a gun!"

Raito's jaw clenched, twitching with fury, since it was true, his father hadn't wanted him to know how to use a gun when he was so young. But that hadn't been the problem; the safety lock was still on, and he had thought that his mother had removed it.

Swiftly, before they could react, Raito's finger surreptitiously clicked down the lock, before he reassessed the situation. The tattoed man had Sayu pressed against his body, as a shield, while the muzzle of his gun was pressed against Sayu's head. His little sister seemed completely unaware of the situation while her limp body was held by the man. Her face was pale, covered by streaks of tears and by their mother's blood, her eyes were wide and unfocused, and her mouth was parted while her breathing was haggard and heavy.

"Sayu-chan," whispered Raito softly, trying to garner her attention, but she didn't respond, and the tattoed man holding her cackled with cruel amusement.

"Drop the gun, boy," said the other man gruffly, though he still leered at him, "or we kill your little sister."

"Let's kill them both and be done with this," interjected the tattoed man. "We have to leave before the police arrive. They won't be long."

"Yes, but I want to have some fun with the boy first," said the other, his disgustingly lustful gaze never leaving Raito. "You had fun with the slut, now it's my turn to have a bit of fun as well."

"Then be quick," said the tattoed man with impatience.

The other man made a move towards Raito, but Raito instantly aimed his gun at him, and spat in a cold and threatening voice, "Don't move!"

His mind spun and rushed with endless scenarios, quickly gauging what he should do to get Sayu and himself alive from the situation.

He would only have time to shoot one of them, before he was shot back or before Sayu was killed. He could either shoot to incapacitate the man, aiming at the man's right shoulder so that he couldn't use the gun, or aiming at a leg or ankle, to make him topple to the floor. Or he could shoot at the man's head or heart… shoot to kill…

But his father had always told him that criminals had to be incapacitated first, and then arrested so that they would face justice. And the police would arrive soon, wouldn't they? How long had it been since these thugs had entered the house? Fifteen minutes… more? The police would take about twenty minutes to arrive if some neighbor called about hearing gunshots…

Then, he could make the men dally there for a while, until the police came, and he could use the distraction to pull Sayu away from the tattoed man…

"Drop the fucking gun!" yelled the tattoed man, his gruff voice impatient and annoyed, while he pressed his gun's muzzle to Sayu's head. "Do it now or I'll kill her instantly."

"Come boy, don't be a fool," jeered the other man, taking one step closer to Raito. "I'll kill you and your sister swiftly if you obey. Be pliant, and you won't suffer much. I'll show mercy to such a pretty thing like you. I'll kill you quickly after I have my fun…"

But Raito was barely paying attention to their words, his gaze kept assessing all of them and his mind was rapidly trying to find a solution… Maim or kill… Could he kill? He had never used a gun and he had never killed before… And, yes, he thought that criminals should be punished by law, and that they should be executed, but after being sentenced… and his father always said…

Though his father was dead, along with his mother… his father had been wrong, hadn't he? His father had been too weak, not ruthless enough, since he had been killed, allowing this filth to attack the rest of the family…

However, if he shot to kill, then he would be a criminal as well… A thirteen-year-old killer, and then what would he do?

Raito's throat dried, and his chest clenched with cold fury while he gazed at his petrified little sister. She had been traumatized by all of this… Sayu… Would she be the same after this? And where on earth was the police? How long would they take?

"That's it," sharply said the tattoed man, glancing at his partner. "I've had it and we have to leave-"

"It's my turn to have some fun," snarled the other man, taking a step closer to Raito. "You fucked the-"

"Yes," snapped the tattoed man angrily, his posture tense, while thick beads of sweat started to pour down his forehead, "but the police will be here in any minute-"

"Onii-san, help me," whispered a soft, broken, pleading voice.

Startled, Raito's eyes snapped to his little sister, but her voice had also startled the others, and everything happened in a kind of hazy slow motion... The tense, tattoed man had given a small jump in surprise, his finger jerking his gun's trigger… a loud gunshot echoed in the room… Sayu's head was pierced open by a gaping hole… rivers of blood poured from it while her lifeless body dropped to the floor… the men were screaming at each other, and then one of them leaped forwards… and Raito was barely aware of the shriek of despair, anguished hatred and fury that ripped from his throat while he madly and repeatedly shot everything that moved… his heart wildly pounding with rage, a rushing noise filling his ears, his sight becoming red… the red of flows of blood... And then, absolute, deadening silence.

Raito took a sharp intake of breath, his chest heaving haggardly while the gun dropped from his fingers. His body was rigid and stiff, his mind a cacophony of meshed and incoherent thoughts, while his wide eyes gazed at his surroundings…

Both men laid dead on the floor, their bodies pouring blood from countless gunshot-wounds, Sayu's small body was stiff, her head breached open and her face unrecognizable, his mother's body was covered by blood on the bed, her form nude around the clothes which had been ripped from her… and Raito almost screamed again, his hands tightly gripping his head.

But then, distantly, came the wails of police sirens, and it was as if something snapped in Raito. The deep-rooted despair and anguished sorrow seemed to sink into a deep pit, and he pushed it away, locking it away from his thoughts, while he forced himself into collected coldness, to think clearly. The burning behind his eyes, the swelling of unshed tears, stopped, since he wouldn't allow himself to cry. He had never cried and nothing would be accomplished by it.

His whole family was dead. He had no one left, he was utterly alone, and he had killed. Raito gazed at his bloodied hands.

He was a killer.

He swallowed the lump in his throat, and his jaw clenched with blazing fury, for that was the only thing that he had left, the only thing which he could use to go on.

His father had been wrong; criminals had to be killed before they had the chance to do things like this. Waiting for sentence and justice didn't work. His father and the NPA should have killed the yakuzas and they should have found the yakuza boss before the man ordered the execution of the Yagami family.

The wail of sirens came closer, and Raito immediately came to a conclusion, his hands clenching into fists. It was clear, the NPA assault of Red Dragon's headquarters had failed; they hadn't captured the yakuza boss because there had been an informant in the police force. That was the only explanation possible, he knew it with blazing certainty.

Furthermore, he had killed in self-defense, but if the NPA had a mole, then the yakuzas would find and kill him.

He knew how it worked. When there was an order to execute a whole family, the Japanese mafia didn't stop until the last member of that family was killed.

And now that he had no family left, he would be sent to an orphanage, if he was lucky enough not to be sent to a juvenile reformatory. And the yakuzas would find him if he went to an orphanage.

They would find him if he stayed in the country. The Red Dragon was the largest crime syndicate in Japan, they had bribed contacts and spies everywhere.

He had to leave Japan, and more importantly, he would have his revenge.

He had lost Sayu, his little sister, the only one he had cared about… Raito's throat tightened, but he refused to look at her body. He looked at nothing but his own reflection in the mirror which hung on a wall.

Automatically, with his shoulders stiff and with his body cold, he wiped his mother's blood from his face, feeling nothing but an eerie detachment and sense of purpose.

He quickly snatched the largest shard of glass from the window he had shattered. He gritted his teeth together and quickly slashed his forearm. He paced the room, allowing thick flows of his blood to splatter on the floor. Then, he quickly grabbed the gun he had used and he wiped it clean from fingerprints, using his shirt's sleeve. Subsequently, still grabbing it with his sleeve, he pressed the gun into the hand of one of the men, and he left it there.

Let the police wonder if he had been kidnapped and then killed by a third attacker. That would serve his purpose, since Yagami Raito could exist no more, for his own safety.

With his mind now clear and coldly focused, Raito rushed to the bathroom and splattered water to clean his face and hair from any traces of blood, making sure that none of his blood remained in the sink. He quickly ran back into his parent's bedroom and he pocketed all the cash his father kept in the security box; their safety-blanket if the family needed money for some emergency.

The sounds of sirens came closer, and Raito ran to his bedroom, quickly snatching his school backpack but only filling it with one shirt and one trouser, nothing that could be missed by the police, and he grabbed his unused passport.

After making sure everything was set for the police to suspect about his possible demise, he quickly rushed down the stairs.

Briefly, he halted in his tracks when he saw his father's body, with a gaping gunshot wound in the chest. He felt a faint pang of sorrow, but he felt anger the most.

His father had failed his own family, and the police was clearly corrupt if the NPA's Chief's family had been executed and the police had been unable to prevent it. His father's sense of justice lacked the ruthlessness and cold-heartedness required to dispose of criminals. His father hadn't killed the murderers of his little sister and of his mother.

Yes, his father had failed, and his whole family had been killed because of his father's weakness - raiding the Red Dragon crime syndicate and making some arrests instead of killing them, working in a police force that was corrupted, not suspecting that there was a bribed mole in their midst.

And Eraldo Coil had been the one who had ordered the NPA to break into the yakuzas' headquarters. The detective had failed to detect a mole in the police force too, and his family had paid the price.

Now with his father already dead, there was no one to blame but the Red Dragon crime syndicate -most particularly the yakuza boss- the corrupted Japanese police force, the mole, and Eraldo Coil.

Raito averted his cold gaze from his father's body and wrenched open the front door, running as fast as he could with his backpack perched on a shoulder, and instantly taking a dark alley to hide from the police cars which rushed along the street.

Their action too little and too late – the police as always ineffectual.

He crouched in the darkness of the night beside a garbage bin, and his hands clenched into fists, shaking with blazing fury and determination.

He would have his revenge on the yakuzas, the corrupted policemen, and Eraldo Coil. That detective who gave orders from the safety of his anonymity, without getting personally involved when the police had to take action, and who had, with his mistake of not detecting a mole, allowed the murder of the Yagami family.

The Red Dragon and Eraldo Coil. Those names would be forever branded in his mind until he got his revenge.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me; I only own this story and make no profit from this.

* * *

**Chapter ****2**

* * *

_November 2, 1999_

_Red was everywhere… the crimson color of blood… his mother's whimpers and broken sobs… the loud, piercing sound of gunshots… the violent, forceful pounding on the mattress… stomach-curling grunts of pleasure… harsh, mocking voices… his father's lifeless body with a gaping chest wound, blood already coagulating… his little sister's shattered head, flowing with spurts of blood… and…_

"_Onii-san, help me," whispered a soft, broken, pleading voice._

A haunted scream was ripped from his throat and Raito woke up, his limbs trashing in the bed, his trembling body covered by sweat, and his heart frantically pounding in his chest.

His throat tightened, and he sat up on the bed, tightly gripping his head while refusing to shed tears.

The same nightmares always plagued his nights, and he couldn't escape the images and voices. He always felt the piercing impotence, deep-rooted sorrow, and the guilty anguish.

It always plagued him and he hated it; the lack of control and the lack of power over what had happened. And he inevitably reviewed it afterwards, thinking about what he should have done… If he had stood beside his mother, if he had been the one to wield the gun from the beginning, if he had killed the thugs before they attacked his mother… if he had killed them before Sayu had been shot…

So many if's haunted his mind that sometimes the tumultuous emotions threatened to overcome and break him. But Raito instantly pulled himself together while wrapping his arms around himself, forcing his mind to think clearly and objectively.

If he had stood by his mother's side and wielded the gun, the attackers would have killed him. If he had tried to prevent his mother's rape, Sayu and he would have been found sooner. He hadn't stopped the rape because he had needed to protect Sayu… but his little sister had been killed nonetheless…

Raito scrunched his eyes close, and fiercely shook his head.

Yes, he had lost his little sister and that, along with his father's death, was what pained him the most.

He knew now, after losing them, that he had loved his family – in his own mild and detached way, but it had still been some sort of love. He had always admired his father, and even if he had realized that his father had failed him and that his father's view of justice was too mild, his death still pained him. And he missed Sayu's mischievous buoyancy and his mother's gentleness and warmth…

However, he couldn't allow himself to be tortured by the memories of that dreadful night… He had lost the only ones he had ever loved and that was it, he had to accept it and move on with his carefully laid-out plans.

His jaw clenched and he slowly opened his eyes, pulling a cold and impassive expression over his features. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with disgust, and quickly padded into the bathroom of the cheap motel room he had rented for the night.

Ever since _that_ night, he had moved from seedy motel to the next, though always making sure that his room had basic Internet access.

So far, he had only spent his money in buying a cheap laptop and an even cheaper portable printer. And he had used the long hours of his days in hacking into government agencies' databases in order to modify the scarce information they had on him.

Obviously, he didn't have any criminal records, so the only files he had to subtlety modify were his digital birthday certificate and his school records. He hadn't modified much: merely the data regarding the color of his eyes and hair, whilst deleting any pictures they had of him.

Furthermore, he had dyed his hair black, albeit very reluctantly since his smooth auburn hair was something he had always been proud of.

Nevertheless, his natural hair color was too unique for a Japanese boy, and it was only temporary, anyway. His eyes were also uncommon, given the caramel color and golden hues of his irises, and the delicate upward tilt of his almond-shaped eyes – not slanted enough for common Asian standards.

But there wasn't much he could do about those things except wear the black contact lenses he had bought. That, along with his black-dyed hair and the hooded sweaters he wore, helped him remain unnoticed.

After leaving Japan, he would decide if he should go back to his natural looks.

Following the first step of his plan, he had used his printer to modify the name on his passport, which now also had a new photo of his new persona with black eyes and hair.

It had been relatively simple to modify his passport. He had been very careful, but it had been easy once he searched on the Internet about how it should be done.

It never ceased to amaze him all the things he learned from that endless source of information. He had even found, accidentally, instructions to build mass-murdering bombs. Not that he was contemplating that, of course. He wasn't a killer.

Raito halted his trail of thought, just when he had undressed and ducked under the water pouring from the showerhead.

His hands clenched into fists, and he instantly reassured himself. He wasn't truly a killer, he had killed out of necessity and he didn't feel any pangs of regret for having killed that filth. He only regretted that he hadn't killed those men sooner, before they had murdered his mother and sister.

And he would never become a simple killer: he was an avenger, with righteous Justice on his side. The problem was how to go about it. He wanted to completely obliterate the Red Dragon yakuza, to kill the NPA mole and other corrupted policemen, and to…

Kill Eraldo Coil?

Raito fiercely shook his drenched head. No, not kill Coil, but harm him, bring him down, rip him of his power as one of the best detectives in the world.

The man had failed, and his family had been murdered because of it. Therefore, he would take everything away from Coil, reducing him to utter powerlessness, impotency, and sorrow - what he had felt during _that_ night.

Yes, he would take everything away from Eraldo Coil and reduce him to nothingness. He suspected that ripping power and influence away from Coil would hurt the man much more than mere death.

And the way to do that was clear to him: he had to become the best detective in the world.

That had always been his ambition, after all. Furthermore, the power that such detectives wielded was immense, since governments obeyed them, and they decided the sentence of the criminals that were captured thanks to them.

It was due to that unlimited power that L, Denueve, and Eraldo Coil had to be taken down, so that he could take their place.

It was clear that if one mistake from Eraldo Coil's part had caused the death of his family, then the man couldn't be allowed to hold such power. And neither could the other two detectives. They weren't fierce enough or merciless enough with the criminals they captured. Usually, the three detectives gave their captured criminals a life-in-prison sentence, and only eventual execution if the laws of the involved country admitted such punishment.

But life-in-prison wasn't punishment severe enough for some criminals. It should be outright execution, no matter the laws of countries. That way, those criminals wouldn't have a chance to appeal or get their sentences reduced due to good conduct. That way, those criminals wouldn't plague their society once they were released.

He knew very well that eighty percent of released criminals reversed back to their former ways – and the Law shouldn't allow such thing to happen.

That was another issue, the Law. It had to be changed, and Japan needed stricter rules regarding those matters.

Therefore, he would follow his plan to continue using his pseudonym as Y to solve cases, sending his conclusions and evidence by untraceable emails, so that Y would soon become more famed and respected than the other three, lamentable, detectives.

Furthermore, to change the Law, he would also need to work openly in the respectful sphere of law-making and police enforcement. That meant eventually going to university, making there useful contacts and building a reputation for his true persona, whilst using his Y persona to work behind the scenes.

On the other hand, to destroy the Red Dragon yakuza, he would have to do it from within the crime syndicate. There was no other way more efficient, since yakuzas were always too secretive and distrustful. Therefore, he would eventually dive into that world with another made-up persona.

In the end, he would have to use three identities to succeed in his goals: Y working as a mysterious world-famed detective, superior to all others; Yagami Raito returning to Japan to attend a prestigious university, becoming the most brilliant young law-maker or politician, so that he could pull the strings of the government; and Kurai – 'Dark' as opposed to 'Light', to 'Raito'- who would manage to make himself indispensable to the Red Dragon yakuza. Kurai would become one of the leaders, manipulating situations so that all other bosses would be killed by the police force or other yakuzas, thus finally tearing apart the Red Dragon crime syndicate.

And Raito would have to become all three of his personas, playing one against the other, shuffling information as he saw fit, and never allowing anyone to discover what he was doing.

In the end, he would make Kurai die after destroying the Red Dragon, and the 'official' Yagami Raito would eventually admit that he was the acclaimed Y.

And no one would ever discover that he had killed, either personally or by commanding and manipulating others. Thus, his useful and well-regarded personas would merge into one; himself – the Yagami Raito who would attend university in Japan, and who would become an influential politician.

Then, all power would lay in his hands, and he would crush those who were to blame for his family's murder. He would be the leader of a new world, governed with righteous justice and efficient law-making and police enforcement.

Raito's lips curved upwards with immense satisfaction, as he draped a towel around his waist. Yes, it would take him years, but he was certain that he could accomplish it. No one could surpass his genius and cunningness.

Nevertheless, first things first. He needed to leave Japan. The media had been buzzing with the news of the massacre of the NPA Chief's family. Though the police hadn't given any official statement regarding the survival of 'Yagami Raito', it had been revealed that his body hadn't been found, and it was thought that he had indeed been killed by a third attacker.

Regardless, the police were still supposedly looking for him, and the Red Dragon yakuza boss knew the truth, since he had only sent two killers and not a third one, so he had to leave the country as soon as possible.

Truthfully, he could thank the unknown yakuza boss for having sent such pathetic filth to kill his family. It was clear that the two men hadn't expected him to use the gun to kill them. And if one of the men hadn't been stupidly decided in raping him, Raito doubted he would have made it alive.

Raito shuddered with disgusted horror, whilst thinking about what the man had intended to do to him.

Sexual contact was something which utterly repulsed him, and obviously 'rape' for even more reason. He had never been physically attracted to anyone, and after hearing his mother's screams of agony and broken sobs while being raped, sexual contact of any kind was something which absolutely disgusted him - and secretively feared.

The image of her ravaged, bloodied, nude body had been branded into his skull, never allowing him to forget what lack of power and resources could do to someone. And how it could end if one allowed anyone to sexually dominate and overpower you.

Oh, he was sly enough to comprehend that he could use sex for his own purposes and advantage, but that would be it. It would be wielded as a tool of manipulation, and he wouldn't engage in it for mere trivial pleasure, since he didn't see how pleasure could be achieved in such a mundane activity.

He forced his mind away from such thoughts, and swiftly clothed himself and neatly combed his dyed, black hair.

He only had a few hours before catching the flight he had booked online, and for which he would pay at the airlines' offices in the airport.

Again, it had been tediously easy to create files about his imaginary Aunt in the databases of the country which would become his new home. It had been very simple to pop her into existence and make her write and sign a letter which allowed her under-aged nephew to fly alone.

Raito doubted that anyone would seriously check her background, though he had carefully created her in the country's tax files and other civilian registries. Nevertheless, no one would discover much if they dug into it, because she was the aunt and legal guardian of the fake identity of his modified passport.

Satisfied with his tidy appearance, Raito proceeded to pack his cheap laptop and mediocre, small printer into his backpack, along with his few other possessions. Then, he carefully used the towel to wipe the motel room clean from his fingerprints.

Once done, he gazed through the tiny window, inwardly saying his farewells to his home country.

Though, he didn't feel any pang of sorrow or longing. A few years from now, he would come back to attend university in order to become the official Yagami Raito; the brilliant student with the potential of becoming an outstanding politician or law-maker. In the meanwhile, he would use his computer and hacking skills, and his persona as Y, to gain vastness of money for his goals; since in Japan, as in many other countries, both surname and fortune mattered if one wanted to become a distinguished and influential person.

As a Yagami, he had the surname, but he no longer had the money. Whatever bank accounts his father had, he couldn't access since he was a teenager, and neither could he sell his family's house. And since he had no relatives, the government would surely claim the house and bank funds as its own, given that for the time being it was best for 'Yagami Raito' to still be considered dead.

He could have attempted to digitally create a Yagami relative so that person could claim his rightful inheritance, but the greedy government would surely dig into that. So he had wisely decided to let it go. Money was something he could easily gather with his skills.

Raito's gaze inspected the room once more, making sure nothing was amiss, before he gracefully and calmly left it, with his backpack secured around his shoulders and his face being covered by his new sweater's hood. Finally ready to fly to his new country.

He had carefully pondered about which should it be, and given his perfect mastery of the English language, and the concentration of Asians in the candidate countries, he had narrowed the choice between Canada, the United States, or England.

In the end, he had chosen the latter. He didn't have a valid reason for his preference. He simply had the strange feeling that being in England would help him in his goals. And his calculating mind always considered the input of his instincts - they had never led him astray.

Hence, he had created his imaginary Aunt to be an English woman of Asian descent, as his modified passport also stated that he was such. His uncommon features, for a Japanese, and his excellent English would help him pass off as an European.

Raito's fleshy lips curved into a smirk. So, it was 'sayonara' to Japan and 'konnichiwa' to England.

* * *

_February 25, 2000_

Raito, back to his natural looks, was bored out of his mind, gazing through the rain-splattered window, whilst the inane Math teacher droned on about how to solve multiple variable equations.

Really, the school his 'Aunt' had enrolled him in was just as tedious as Eishu Junior High School in Japan, and this one was supposed to be excellent. He had selected it after checking several prospects online, and had finally chosen it because of its reputation in having very high academic standards. Furthermore, he had to pay good money for his tuition as well.

Money earned by his work as a free-lance programmer who had been immediately snatched by a banking institution, after he had hacked their supposedly impenetrable firewalls, and then sent them an email specifying how he had done it. The bank had instantly agreed to his terms of anonymity and his request to work from his home. Thus, every two weeks, the bank deposited his salary in the online account he had set up under his 'Aunt's' name.

As a thirteen-year-old boy he couldn't go around making withdrawals in person, or using a credit card, but he could use the debit card and the pin number to withdraw cash from automated machines, and payments could be deducted from the account as well. The latter was how he paid the school's tuition and the rent of the small studio he had taken at a residence for international students, with the excuse that his Aunt lived outside London.

The elitist and supposedly highly competitive school he attended was the best, presumably, but he had seen no signs of it.

Given his ambitions, his education greatly mattered to him, but he had been forced to simply study on his own by using their library, instead of learning anything useful in class. Not to mention the giggling British girls admiringly gazing at him, shooting him what they undoubtedly believed to be flirtatiously appealing smiles…

Raito clicked his tongue with snide disgust and irritation.

Furthermore, after he had taken the entrance aptitude tests to verify that he passed the school's standards, several of his teachers and fellow students had started fawning over him.

That had been almost two months ago, and the school's headmaster had been so excited about his perfect grades in the tests, that he had been subjected to several other examinations, including an IQ test, which wasn't new for him.

As always, his grades had also been outstanding, though the results of his IQ test hadn't been revealed to him. Nevertheless, he could tell that it had been very high, given how the headmaster behaved like a sycophantic idiot around him, whenever they crossed paths.

Moreover, it seemed that he was already the best student who had ever graced the halls of the stuffy, traditional English school.

He sincerely missed his school in Tokyo, since there, at least, his teachers had treated him with dignified respect and quiet, polite admiration, borne from their Japanese culture.

In England, instead, they had no true sense of propriety in comparison. No matter how stuck-up and pompous British were believed to be, his teachers gushed and fawned over him without any proper decorum or regard for personal boundaries. They seemed drawn to him as moths to the light, apparently never having met someone with his prodigal brilliance, exotic looks, and well-mannered graces.

Indeed, Raito was forced to employ great efforts to uphold his humble, noble, and amiable mask, instead of ill-temperedly snapping at them to be left alone.

Regardless, after school he studied on his own, he kept hacking into police agencies to explore on-going cases and send emails as Y, while he continued searching for any clue regarding Eraldo Coil's identity and whereabouts.

The latter was what currently had him in a sour mood. He hadn't been able to discover a single shred of personal information about the detective, nor about L or Denueve, and it irked and angered him as nothing else ever had.

"The Headmaster requests Andrew Jones. May I have your permission to ask him to accompany me, Professor?"

At the sound of his fake name, Raito snapped his head around to gaze at whom had interrupted the class. It was a pretty, young woman; the Headmaster's secretary.

"Of -of cour-se, Miss Brice," stuttered the Math teacher, owlishly blinking at her, as if suddenly finding himself, quite inexplicably, in the midst of a classroom filled with students who had been whispering about dates with girls, boys, video games and the latest pop idol sensation.

The young woman smiled at Raito, and he swiftly grabbed his schoolbag, gracefully strolling after her whilst inwardly relieved of being pulled out from the dull lesson.

As they took a grand staircase, they amiably chatted together, Raito charmingly smiling at her, and Miss Brice coquettishly playing along, apparently also glad of having something to ease her out of boredom.

At last, she halted to open the pretentious, mahogany door of the Headmaster's office, and winked at him. "In you go, Mr. Jones. They're waiting for you."

Masking his curiosity with impassive calmness, he nodded and went inside the vast, richly decorated office.

Raito's inspecting gaze quickly dismissed the old fool seated behind the desk, and landed on the unknown man who was gazing back at him, the slightly crinkled eyes shrewd, piercing, and assessing.

The Headmaster cleared his throat and rose from his ornate armchair. "Mr. Jones, this is Mr. Roger, one of the patrons of this school." He nodded at the old, yet younger man, and added deferentially, "I'll leave you alone, Mr. Roger, as requested."

To his surprise, the old Headmaster indeed relinquished the comforts of his office, swiftly leaving the room, and Raito's eyes flickered back to the elegantly dressed man.

"Is Mr. Roger your real name?" he said with a hint of skepticism, though he made sure that his tone of voice was friendly and amused.

The man arched an eyebrow, and replied curtly, "It is. Is Mr. Andrew Jones yours?"

"Of course," said Raito placidly, though he had inwardly tensed, his mind going through several possibilities and ways to solve his current predicament.

It was evident that Mr. Roger knew that it wasn't, but the man wasn't an Immigration officer, was he? Was the man here to inform him that they would deport him? It didn't seem possible, he had been very careful with-

"If you wish to maintain that illusion during this conversation, I'll oblige," said Mr. Roger indifferently. The man pierced him with his eyes, through the round spectacles perched on his large nose. "My purpose is to evaluate your aptitudes, Mr. Jones. I make it my business to be informed about outstanding students, and your Headmaster sent me the results of all the examinations you took when enrolling. With your permission, I would like to test you further."

"For what reason?" inquired Raito politely.

The man, at least, wasn't patronizing or condescending, as many other adults behaved before truly knowing who they were up against, but he suspected the man's motives nonetheless. This wasn't usual at all, and given his situation, he had to be cautious.

"To offer you a place in my school," replied Mr. Roger, "if you pass the tests."

"What school is that-"

"I cannot tell you," sternly interrupted Mr. Roger, "unless you undergo the tests, pass them, and agree to visit my school. Once you do, you'll have to decide immediately if you want to become one of the pupils of my institution. It will be a one-time offer, and more relevant information will be disclosed to you if you accept. Until then, you'll have to rein in your curiosity, _Mr. Jones_."

Raito's eyebrow twitched with barely suppressed annoyance, but he offered the man a small, polite smile and gracefully sat down with supreme calmness.

"Very well, I'll take your tests."

Mr. Roger mutely nodded, and settled a black leather suitcase on the desk, pulling out a heavy stack of printed papers. He pushed them towards Raito, along with a sharp pencil.

"It will take you three hours, Mr. Jones, that's the standard time one of my pupils spend on them," said Mr. Roger curtly, "and I'll be timing you and supervising-"

"Three hours?" interjected Raito coolly. He glanced at the thick stack of tests, and his lips curved into a smirk he couldn't repress. "It will take me much less time, Mr. Roger."

"Arrogant, I see," said the man, piercing him with his eyes, as if filing that piece of information into his mind, which Raito truly suspected him of doing. The man's gaze was too evaluative and sharply assessing, but it only served to spur him further.

"Confident in my own abilities, I rather say," volleyed back Raito.

In the end, it took him one hour and fifteen minutes to finish the tests, always with Mr. Roger's gaze inspecting every twitch of his face, which Raito purposely kept relaxed and unfazed.

Though Raito had to admit that he had never taken tests like those. All sorts of aptitudes were being measured, but mostly deductive skills; sharpness of mind and quickness of thought in considering details and in processing information; imagination and adaptability when confronted with seemingly impossibilities; advanced mathematical skills; complex games of logic and reasoning; writing and reading abilities which mostly tested the speed in which he could order information, process it or absorb it; and some tricky psychological and personality tests which he had no trouble answering to give the impression he wanted to – that of a humble, good-hearted young boy, yet sly and cunning, but not in a way that could be considered threatening.

The tests were, admittedly, the hardest, most complex and thorough he had ever taken. But he had immensely enjoyed the challenge, and they had certainly piqued his curiosity about Mr. 'Roger' and his school.

The minute Raito laid down his pencil, Mr. Roger had clicked the button of a chronometer, scribbled down the time Raito had spent on the tests, and summarily enclosed the stack of tests back into the suitcase.

"I'll have your results soon, Mr. Jones," said the man curtly, "and I'll contact you if we're interested in having you in our school."

And with that, Mr. Roger calmly left the room with suitcase in hand, leaving a seething Raito behind, since he had expected to be given a bit more of information.

* * *

_February 28, 2000_

Raito had awoken early in the morning, showering and impeccably dressing to get ready to walk the few blocks to his school. But in the middle of his morning ablutions, he had been interrupted by a polite knock on his door, and his landlady had handed him a sealed letter addressed to him.

_Mr. Andrew Jones,_

_Your tests results have been favorable and I offer you a place in my school. A car will pick you up in thirty minutes. We'll carry a meeting in which I'll give you more information regarding the school and the subjects you'll be learning. Thereafter, you'll have to decide if you accept to become one of the students. _

_It will be a one-time offer, and in view that all the pupils take residence in the school, I suggest that you pack all your possessions and bring them with you during your visit, since it's likely that you'll accept the offer. If you refuse it, you'll be taken back to your residence._

_Sincerely,_

_Mr. Roger_

Raito's first reaction was to crumble the letter in his fist and throw it to the farthest corner of his small bedroom, fuming with anger due to the presumptuousness, secretiveness, and controlling nature of the man. As if he would just hurriedly pack all his things to obey the man's commands!

After a few minutes, mistrustfulness settled instead. He had extensively searched online for a Roger who was a patron or member of the board of governors of his school, and he had found no one by that name – for first name or surname. And the whole issue about being picked up by a car… Well, was he going to be kidnapped for some devious purpose?

He finally reached no reason for it, and calmed down in order to explore his choices.

He knew perfectly well that his Headmaster had lied about Mr. Roger, though the Headmaster certainly knew the man from somewhere. And given the old fool's respectful attitude, Mr. Roger had to be a man of influence. Moreover, the complexity of the tests had inevitably piqued his curiosity, as well as all the cloak-and-dagger nature of the letter.

In the end, Raito finally decided that he would comply. Though Mr. Roger was certainly going to receive a piece of his mind if the man kept insisting on treating him so disrespectfully, as if he were a misbehaving child who needed to be put in place by a firm hand. As if that would ever happen – he kowtowed to no one, unless he had a sly and manipulative reason for it.

Now, Raito was gracefully seated at the back of a classic, elegant limousine – one of older design, and thus tasteful, not like the garish new models that famous people liked to buy or rent. Nevertheless, the unpretentious luxury of such car had surprised him; Mr. Roger was rich.

But that contemplation hadn't captured his attention during the two-hour-long ride. What did were the implications of the letter he had received. Mr. Roger hadn't expressed any concern about his need to get the permission of some parent or relative in order to make the decision of attending the school. No, the decision was left to him. Therefore, it was clear that Mr. Roger had found out that his 'Aunt' was a fabrication, and that he had forged every document he used to enter and remain in England.

Anger swelled up in Raito, since his exploits seemed to have been discovered, but he pushed away any yearning for vindictive retribution. He made himself calmly analyze the situation and the possible damage that Mr. Roger could do to him, if so wished. Even if the man knew that there was no 'Aunt', it was improbable that it would be used against him, given the man's interest in him. And it was even more improbable that his real identity could be unraveled.

He doubted that anyone would take the trouble to trace back his origins, and he had modified or deleted every single picture of him held in any Japanese government agency or school record. His family home had albums with his pictures, of course, but the Japanese government had surely auctioned the furniture and other valuable possessions, and just thrown into the dustbin inconsequential things like photos.

Moreover, he had been hacking Japan's police databases to check the status of his file, and he discovered that Yagami Raito had indeed been classified as 'missing, presumed dead'. His had become a cold case after a few months – just as he had intended.

Therefore, he was certain that even though his present features were his own natural appearance, no one could connect him to the presumably murdered Raito son of Yagami Soichiro. Not unless he revealed his name, and he had no intention of doing so. For now, he remained Andrew Jones.

And just then, the limousine smoothly veered to the right and halted. Raito peered out through the smoked windows of the car, and gazed with calculating curiosity at the 'school'. It looked like a very small traditional English manor, or a large, country house of some wealthy, noble Brit. But there were no signs bearing the name of the school.

He didn't wait for the silent chauffeur to open the door for him, and smoothly climbed out from the car. He thanked the chauffeur and politely refused the man's help to carry his own luggage. He was beyond self-sufficient, and he wouldn't be seen entering the school looking anything but.

Raito grasped the handle of his luggage, and tranquilly ambled through the parted oak doors of the entrance.

It seemed that all the students were in class, since the hallways were deserted and he could hear muffled voices coming from nearby, closed doors.

"You can leave your luggage here, Mr. Jones," said a curt voice. "If you decide to stay with us, I'll have someone carry it to your assigned bedroom."

Raito slowly turned his head around to gaze at Mr. Roger, who had popped out of nowhere, and he said politely, "I rather have my luggage with me instead of leaving it unattended. Thank you."

Though he inwardly sneered; he wouldn't be such a fool as to leave his laptop unprotected. Granted, it would take a genius who surpassed his own brilliancy to crack down all the codes and security measures protecting the information he kept in his laptop, but he wouldn't chance it.

"Very well," said Mr. Roger indifferently. "Then I must properly welcome you to Wammy's House."

Raito merely quirked an eyebrow at the ridiculous name.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me; I only own this story and make no profit from this.

A/N:

Thanks to all reviewers! I'm very happy that some of you are enjoying this fic so far. And I promise to reply to any questions in your reviews the next time I post a chapter.

As for why I'm not making Raito chose the name of 'Kira' as a pseudonym, well, I truly think that Raito wouldn't do that. In canon, it was the public who named him 'Kira' for being a 'Killer', and even canon Raito didn't like it when he heard of it, since he didn't consider himself a killer. The same applies to my Raito. He doesn't consider himself a mundane, criminal killer, but a righteous one, so he wouldn't peg himself as a Killer, or derive the word 'Kira' after the Japanese pronunciation of the English word 'Killer'. Moreover, it wouldn't be realistic for him to come up with a name that was invented by the public in canon. I don't see how it could be explained. Nevertheless, I can't say if 'Kira' will pop or not, or who will have Death Notes, but the Death Notes will certainly figure in my fic. Oh, and Raito did chose 'Y' as a pseudonym for his detective persona because of his family name 'Yagami'.

NOTE: Contains info given in manga Death Note Finale and DN After Note.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

* * *

_February 28, 2000_

Raito was seated in Mr. Roger's office, with his luggage close at hand, and he had listened to what the man had to say for about fifteen minutes, without interrupting him since he preferred to draw his own conclusions in his calculating mind.

The office was large, surprisingly cozy, and neatly ordered with a clear show of efficiency. Nothing gave a single clue about Mr. Roger's present or past personal life, nor regarding the man's identity. Furthermore, strangely enough, since the beginning of their meeting there had been a flat computer screen glowing in plain whiteness, settled to a side of Mr. Roger, with the screen facing Raito.

The strange location and direction of the screen had spiked Raito's suspiciousness, but he hadn't asked Mr. Roger about it. The man disregarded it with supreme indifference and Raito doubted that his questions would he answered, anyway.

The man finally remained silent, and Raito decided to take the reins of their conversation, his face a relaxed and impassive mask revealing nothing but polite curiosity and amiability.

"If I've understood you correctly, Mr. Roger," he said placidly, "this school – Wammy's House – is an institution for orphaned prodigies. The subjects offered are of a very advanced level, with the purpose of developing the students' exceptional intelligence and skills. And you've assured me that my mind will be challenged by both staff and students. Furthermore, you offer to pay all my expenses whilst residing here, and when I graduate at the age of eighteen –or sooner if it's in my power- you'll help me obtain a job which will pay well and be concordant to my interests and abilities. Also, you standardly offer financial assistance to set up students who graduate from this institution, and, according to you, their relation with other students and with this school have always been useful to them."

He purposely paused, to eye the man closely as he added slowly, arching a quizzical eyebrow, "In another words, your school offers advanced classes, challenging classmates of prodigy-level genius, free tuition and living expenses, and later financial assistance once I graduate, along with your help to get me an interesting job or to get admitted into a university of my choosing. My question to you is the following: Why have you offered me this, given that I'm not an orphan?"

"Mr. _Jones_," said Mr. Roger pointedly, emphasizing the surname, "I'm well aware that 'Andrew Jones' isn't your real name. Once your Headmaster sent me the results of your tests, a background check on your alleged name was performed. And it was revealed that you, with admitted resourcefulness and punctilious diligence, created a 'Nancy Jones' in several English governmental agencies. For all legal purposes, this imaginary aunt you concocted is your guardian and the holder of your bank account. And one of the motives you could have had to create her is if you have no living relatives at all." He skewered Raito with a hard look. "Thus, you're obviously an orphan. Moreover, since 'Nancy Jones' only exists electronically, you also created her to cover your true identity." The man waved a hand dismissively, as he added curtly, "Fear not because of this. We don't particularly care about your past or your reasons for hiding your name, since none of the students here refer or know each other by their real names. Instead, they use aliases, mostly patterned after letters in the alphabet. The students' real names are always kept a secret."

"Except from you," interjected Raito, narrowing his eyes at him. "You can't expect me to believe that you don't have files on your students, or that you haven't checked their backgrounds."

"I admit all that openly," said Mr. Roger calmly. "I know the real names of every child in Wammy's House, but the information is kept in the strictest of confidence and in the tightest levels of security." He arched his eyebrows at Raito, as he intoned quietly, "I trust that someday you'll confide your real name to me and the circumstances that have forced you to keep it unknown. But that information won't be pried from you against your will. And we'll only dig into your past, and true identity, if you give us a reason for it."

Raito momentarily clenched his jaw. The threat was there. They would dig into his past if he did something against Wammy's House, or if he behaved in some unpardonable way… But he instantly relaxed his expression. It didn't truly matter. He had already suspected that Mr. Roger knew that 'Nancy and Andrew Jones' were a fabrication. Furthermore, he could build other identities if needed.

The crux of the matter was that the offer was a highly convenient one, since the school really seemed to be designed for people like him, and he could make useful contacts. The school seemed to have been set up to forge a network of highly brilliant people… and that entailed power and influence, but for what reason?

"Furthermore," added Mr. Roger, "we can help you attain real, legal documents, if you need them. Documents such as passports for different countries and under different names, or birth certificates-"

"I understand," interrupted Raito, piercing the man with his caramel eyes. "But what's the true purpose of this school?"

Mr. Roger quirked an eyebrow. "I've already explained that it's a school for gifted children-"

"Yes," said Raito sharply, his eyes narrowing, "but not for altruistic motives, is it? Why would anyone take the trouble of setting up and financing such a school if they gain nothing by it? What are students requested to do the later in their lives?" His eyes further narrowed, now mere suspicious slits. "Perhaps you get them influential jobs so that former students can tweak a law here, or persuade some politician or businessman there, in order to advance some devious purpose of yours. It seems to me that former students constitute a network of people who can influence and manipulate others, to promote whatever plans you have."

"Are you suggesting that I use this school for the accumulation of political power?" said Mr. Roger disbelievingly.

"Why not?" said Raito crisply. "It seems a very valid reason to me."

Mr. Roger chuckled under his breath, and it only served to make Raito become more irked and suspicious.

The man shook his head, and said sternly, "We have no dark purpose, Mr. Jones. If any, Wammy's House serves to bring justice to the world."

"Justice?" said Raito, frowning at him. "What do you mean by that? Furthermore, what kind of advanced subjects are taught here? You didn't specify-"

"For that, I'll leave someone else to explain matters to you," said Mr. Roger curtly, swiftly standing up and leaving the room before Raito had a chance to blink.

Had the man lost his marbles? Who was supposed to explain matters to him, the walls? Some ghost lurking in the shadows?

He frowned, but immediately his gaze snapped to the white glowing screen, his caramel eyes narrowing as he inspected it. Yes, the flat computer screen had loudspeakers and a tiny microphone, and also a miniscule, inconspicuous glass sphere imbedded into its frame – a camera. So someone had been watching and listening.

Raito almost addressed it, about to demand that the person spoke up and explained things. But he opted for assessing silence, instead. The situation felt like a test – perhaps to see how cool and collected he could remain.

He stared at the white screen with a piercing gaze, not moving an inch. But as the minutes ticked by, the screen didn't flicker and not a sound beeped, and he started to grow impatiently angry by the second.

Regardless, he straightened up on his seat and forced himself to appear poised and impassive.

But as more time flew by, the prolonged silence began to aggravate him further, and he started to gaze with narrowed eyes at his surroundings, his eyes repeatedly darting back to the screen, suspiciously and calculatingly.

About thirty minutes later, the absolute silence still seemed to stretch indefinitely…

"HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT THE GREATEST DETECTIVE IN THE WORLD?" loudly boomed a robotic voice.

In startlement, Raito almost yelped a 'Bloody hell!' –he had picked up British expressions and accent very quickly- but he caught himself on time, only having slightly jumped in his seat, quickly grasping the arms of the chair before he flopped to the floor in surprise.

A kind of creepy, robotic chuckle came from the flat screen, and Raito darkly glared at it, while he adopted his graceful pose once again.

"Took you long enough," he said stiffly.

"I was testing you," replied the robotic voice calmly. "And you didn't disappoint. You would have let me down if you had demanded answers straight away, before analyzing your situation and making me speak first."

"I know," said Raito, shooting a superior smirk at the screen. "That's why I didn't address you."

"_Hm, yes, you knew_," said the scrambled voice, before it turned slightly cheerful. "_You can ask your questions now, Andrew. Or should I call you Jones, or-_"

Warning alarms flared in Raito's mind, since the voice had spoken in Mandarin, Thai, and then Japanese, and he said sharply, "I didn't understand what you said. In what language are you speaking?"

"_You don't understand me?_" said the robotic voice in Mandarin, before it swiftly switched to Japanese once more. "_Are you certain?_"

"You're doing it again," interjected Raito calmly, masking his irritated annoyance. As if he would fall for that trick!

"I believe that you're of Asian descent," said the robotic voice in English. "Your hair and eye color is uncommon for an Asian, but the tilt in the shape of your eyes denotes some Asian ancestry, Japanese most likely, with an eighty-three percent probability-"

"I am of Asian descent," interrupted Raito coolly, "but very distantly, thus, I don't understand any Asian languages."

"_Not even Japanese, Andrew-kun?_" retorted the robotic voice in Japanese.

Raito frowned at the screen with puzzlement. "I can tell that you're speaking some Asian language, but I don't understand it. I never learned any."

"Hm, perhaps you didn't."

There was a certain hint of interest but also of amusement in the robotic voice, and Raito had to employ great efforts to force his features to remain placidly relaxed. Inside, he was seething. He didn't 'amuse' – he was respected and feared due to his brilliance!

"What should I call you? Have you chosen an alias?"

"You can call me Andrew," replied Raito nonchalantly. He smirked, and added, "Or A, if you prefer-"

"Not A," interrupted the robotic voice flatly. "I'll address you as Andrew-kun."

"I told you," said Raito calmly, suppressing his irritation, "that I'm not Japanese."

"But I think that you're of Japanese descent," said the voice unfazed, "with a probability of 83 percent-"

"Fine," interjected Raito crisply, before he waved his hand dismissively and politely smiled at the screen. "Call me however you wish, it doesn't matter to me."

"Excellent," said the robotic voice cheerfully. "Now, Andrew-kun, please reply to my initial question."

'Have you heard about the greatest detective in the world?' resounded in Raito's mind, as he remembered what the voice had said, while his mind sped with a rush of suspicions and calculations.

His eyes marginally widened, piercing the glowing white screen, as he said quietly, "You are-"

"I am L," said the robotic voice, with a hint of excited anticipation, at the same time that the glowing white screen was emblazoned with an ornate, Old English 'L'.

Raito almost cackled with gleeful and vicious joy, while his mind spun with the revelation. He couldn't believe it. This was L, speaking to him at Wammy's House, therefore the school had to be much more than a simple institution for orphan prodigies. This had to be the workings of Fate –not that he believed in such rubbish, or in any type of god- but his path had crossed L's, one of the detectives he wanted to bring down! The best detective in the world who he wanted to surpass and dethrone- it was too good to be true!

Nonetheless, with his mind chortling gleefully, Raito's face revealed nothing but polite curiosity. "So you are L. I see."

"You don't seem surprised, Andrew-kun," said the robotic voice.

Raito's eyes snapped to the screen. Had he imagined it or did the voice hold a hint of childish disappointment – almost like a verbal pout? He inwardly shook his head at the ridiculous notion. L had to be a middle-aged man, stern and curt, not a silly child.

"I am, a bit," replied Raito coolly, intently gazing at the ornate, black 'L' on the white screen. He placidly stretched on his seat, and added with a faint smirk, "But I was right about this place, wasn't I? Wammy's House is not a mere school for brilliant orphans. It can't be, since here you are, speaking to me. It's clear that you have some form of connection to this institution." He leaned forward, and whispered with an amicable smile, "Tell me L, did you attend this school?"

"Your deduction skills are up to par, Andrew-kun," said the robotic voice joyfully. "Given your test results, I expected nothing less."

"Is that why I'm here, because of my results?"

"Yes," said the scrambled voice. "At present, there are fifteen children in Wammy's House, of different backgrounds and nationalities, and all of them were sought out because they were orphans who had proved their brilliancy in some way. Then, they were tested by Roger, and subsequently admitted if their scores were high enough."

Raito nodded, while his mind whirled with the implications. Children of different nationalities… So Mr. Roger didn't only seek out British prodigies, as he had once believed. Instead, the man had to be looking for orphaned geniuses all over the world. Therefore, he had been picked up because of his grades on the entrance aptitude tests of his English school, and because Mr. Roger had found out that 'Nancy Jones' was a fabrication, thus correctly deducing that he was an orphan.

If _that_ night had never happened, he wouldn't be here, because even though he was a certified genius given his school grades and IQ tests scores in Japan, he would still have a family. Therefore, Mr. Roger wouldn't have shown an interest in testing him further or in admitting him in Wammy's House. The children here had nowhere else to go, no relative to shelter and protect them, and nowhere else to develop their skills – much like him, currently.

"You're very quiet, Andrew-kun," said the robotic voice, laced with piqued curiosity as though however was behind it was tilting his head to a side. "What are you thinking about?"

"About this school," replied Raito dismissively, before he pierced the screen with his eyes, and demanded sharply, "What's Wammy's House true purpose?"

"What do you think?"

Raito intently gazed at the screen, as he whispered quietly, "It has to do with you. Are you funding this school so that you can place graduated students on jobs that will be useful for you? Perhaps you make them take jobs in police agencies, so that they can pass information to you, or they work in governments-"

"That's a valid deduction," interrupted the robotic voice calmly, "but you're mistaken. I'm not the founder of the school, nor do I finance it."

Raito frowned, his mind working fast. "Then… Mr. Roger said that Wammy's House serves to bring justice to the world." He pierced the screen with his eyes, slightly widening. "Then the children here are trained to become detectives who'll work for you?"

"You're almost right," said the scrambled voice contently. "Yet, Wammy's House currently serves to train children, so that one day I'll choose one of them to become my successor."

"Your successor?" interjected Raito, intently gazing at the screen. "You mean that you've chosen one of the students here to become L once you die?"

"I will choose, eventually," said the voice impassively, "if I feel that my life is in jeopardy. Regardless, I don't expect to choose anyone for many years to come."

"I see," muttered Raito under his breath, his mind spinning with sly schemes. "And you'll choose your successor based on their tests scores and on their grades in the subjects taught here?"

"Partly," replied the voice, "but also based on their personality traits." It paused, and then added with a hint of amusement, "For instance, there's something fierce and cunningly calculating that I see in your eyes – and I like that."

Raito blinked in surprise, before he pulled a placid expression over his features, suppressing any sneering tone in his voice. "I find it hard to believe that you would 'like' these things you claim to see in my eyes, given that you're upheld as the embodiment of Justice."

There was a stretch of silence, before the robotic voice said coolly, "I didn't become L due to any sense of justice. Figuring out difficult cases is my hobby. If you measured good and evil deeds by current laws, I would be responsible for many crimes. That's why I only take cases which pique my interest. It's not justice at all. It's a matter of finding something that challenges me. And if it means being able to clear a case, I don't play fair. I'm a dishonest, cheating human being who hates losing."

Raito almost gaped at the screen - almost. Instead, he merely gazed back at it with supreme nonchalance, his face revealing nothing of the internal, puzzled debate in his mind.

"You expected me to say something entirely different," said the scrambled voice, with a hint of amusement.

"I did," said Raito flatly.

"Hm. Have I disappointed Andrew-kun?"

"No," replied Raito quietly, but he didn't elucidate any further.

As a matter of fact, now he respected L – a bit. The man hadn't spouted anything corny and fluffy about righteous Justice. Instead, L had revealed that solving cases was a challenging game for him, and that he didn't play by the rules. Raito empathized with that sentiment and with the need of finding things which challenged one's mind. He felt that L was exactly the kind of person who wanted to achieve his own goals, and did it by any means – much like himself. It seemed that both of them had their own brand of justice, tinted with a cynical view about the harsh realities of the world.

Nevertheless, that didn't mean that he liked L. He still wanted to bring down the detective, and now for even more reason since the man appeared to be a worthy adversary. Yes, he would enjoy besting L very much.

"Do you covet to become my successor, Andrew-kun?"

Raito's eyes snapped to the screen, and he said amicably, with a sweet smile on his lips, "I would like to prove myself to be worthy of such position, L."

Though, truthfully, he had no intention whatsoever of becoming the man's successor. He wasn't a follower. He was a leader.

For L, he would be Y, a detective surpassing and besting L's skills, solving cases before the man did, and thus, gaining the title as the best detective of the world.

It would take time, but he would dethrone L, and most importantly Eraldo Coil. Moreover, he could use L for his goal of bringing down Eraldo Coil as well. He would find a way of discovering Eraldo Coil's identity. And being at Wammy's House, with a connection to L, would help him with that. There was much that he could learn and then use against L, Deneuve, and Eraldo Coil.

"I'm happy to hear that," said the robotic voice after a brief pause, which made Raito suspect that L hadn't believed his sweet, reverential statement, and thus made Raito feel a flare of competitive challenge and enjoyment. Here was a man with whom he could play in the higher leagues, matching wit against wit. "I assume that you have decided to stay in Wammy's House."

"You assume correctly," said Raito placidly, holding back a wide, nasty smirk.

"I'm very glad, Andrew-kun. You should inform Roger about your decision, so that he can explain what subjects you'll be taking during the next few years. I think you'll find him in the main parlor, reading the newspaper."

Raito nodded and fluidly stood up. But before grabbing the handle of his luggage, he gazed at the screen, and inquired politely, "When will we meet again?"

"You won't meet me in person, ever," said the robotic voice impassively. "As for a meeting such as this, I don't think it will happen again. I never interact with Wammy's House pupils. We'll only speak again if I have a good reason for it."

Raito clenched his jaw with irritation, feeling a flare of angered disappointment which he didn't bother to determine the cause for. Yet, he shot the screen a charming smile strategically performed to gain friends and melt hearts, and he elegantly ambled out of the room, with his luggage in hand.

"Good-bye, Andrew-kun," were the last robotic words - laced with amusement, which made Raito's eyebrow twitch with annoyance - that he heard before firmly closing the door behind him.

* * *

The instant he closed the office door, Raito encountered two young boys planted in front of him.

The tallest one was a thin boy with straight, honey-blond and chin-length hair, and sharp blue eyes. The boy was dressed in tight, black leather pants, and a long-sleeved black t-shirt underneath a form-fitting dark crimson vest. He wore short, black gloves, and, strangely enough, a crucifix hung from his neck.

The other boy, who seemed younger, had red hair, and his dark blue eyes, almost black, were fixed on the portable videogame console he was playing with, seemingly completely absorbed in it. He wore a stripped sweater, a long, puffy vest, jeans tucked under combat boots, and a pair of orange-tinted goggles were perched in the midst of the coppery locks of hair.

The honey-blond boy was currently glaring at Raito, with arms crossed over his chest, and he said sharply, "We heard your conversation. It was with L. He has never spoken to anyone. Who the fuck are you?"

"You were spying?" said Raito, narrowing his eyes at him. "Shouldn't you be in class, boy?"

"Don't fucking call me 'boy'!" snapped the blond temperamentally. "I'm Mello." He briskly pointed a thumb towards the other boy. "And this is Matt."

The other boy, Matt, briefly glanced up at Raito, shooting him a military salute with a hand poised at his forehead, before he gazed down at his videogame, his fingers deftly and quickly clicking buttons, whilst lewdly cursing under his breath. Something along the lines of 'Fucking, cock-sucking alien, die, die! I'm gonna rip ya to pieces!'

Raito's eyebrow shot upwards, but he remained silent while inspecting the strange pair.

The tallest boy, Mello, darkly glared at Raito, and spat angrily, "Well, who the fucking hell are you?"

"I'm Andrew," replied Raito, his gaze flicking back to Mello. "I'm a new student." He pierced him with his eyes, and said sharply, "You were spying on my conversation with L."

"So what?" bit out Mello, mutinously scowling at him. "I do whatever I fucking like. And we have a break, anyway. We heard voices coming from Roger's office, and we were fucking curious."

"You were curious," said Matt pointedly, with his gaze still fixed on his videogame and his fingers violently stabbing the console's buttons.

"Yes, I was, and you trailed after me, as always," snapped Mello, firmly punching the other boy on the arm, "like my good, obedient, little pet."

Matt snorted, but other than that, he didn't seem remotely annoyed at the words or at being punched, and simply continued playing with his videogame, cursing under his breath like the lewdest criminal.

"Why did L speak to you?" spat Mello, narrowing his blue eyes at Raito, with an assessing, angry glint in his eyes.

"We shouldn't discuss it in the hallway," interjected Matt, his gaze never leaving his videogame.

"Quite right, my friend," said Mello, his lips curling upwards, before he grabbed Raito's sleeve to pull him forward. "We'll go to the freaking library. Come, Andrew."

"I don't take orders, from you or anyone else," said Raito coldly, pulling away from the boy's grasp.

Mello glared at him as he snapped briskly, "I want frigging information and you're new to this school, so there's much you don't fucking know. So, we'll trade information. Deal?"

"Alright," said Raito, smirking at him. "Lead the way to the library, then."

The boy huffed angrily, before spinning on his heels and swiftly striding along the hallway, with a videogame-absorbed Matt trailing after him. Raito followed with luggage in hand, masking his irritation.

It wouldn't serve to antagonize fellow students. It would be best for him to be amiable and charismatic, thus gathering 'friends' he could later use. And Mello had a valid point, he knew almost nothing about the school, and by being 'close' to boys like Matt and Mello he could garner more information about L.

The moment he entered the vast, mahogany-paneled room of the library, which was covered with shelves upon shelves filled with countless books, he saw a small boy sitting on the floor. From his point of view, the small boy had platinum-white hair, he was dressed in white pajamas, and was seated very strangely on the wooden floor. He had one leg tucked to one side, and the other folded against his chest, while seated in the midst of what looked like a small fortress built with dices.

Raito's gaze darted to Mello when the boy loudly groaned and stomped towards the smaller boy, who was now setting another dice on his construction.

"Don't you ever disappear, little freak?!" madly yelled Mello, towering over the smaller boy. "Get out of the frigging library, we have grown-up stuff to discuss!"

"I'm not going anywhere," said the smaller boy in a flat tone of voice, utterly unfazed while he set one more dice on top of a tower.

"I said get the fuck out!" roared Mello angrily, viciously kicking the smaller boy's construction, which loudly crashed to the floor, dices rolling everywhere. "Now leave and take your stupid fucking childish games someplace else!"

"I'm not leaving," repeated the small boy like some automaton, his voice deadpanned, while calmly picking up some dices, starting to build something with them anew.

"ARGH!" yelled Mello, stomping down his foot with exasperated fury, "I hate you, Near, you fucking little freak!"

"So you've informed me repeatedly," said the small boy with impassive indifference, his gaze never leaving his construction.

"Yeah, well, you know what?" spat Mello, his eyes narrowing angrily at the small boy. "You're nothing special, Near. L never spoke to you." He pointed at Raito, and added with barbed maliciousness, "This boy, Andrew, is new in school and L has just spoken to him! And L never spoke to you. So you're nothing especial! You hear?!"

At that, Raito –who had been calmly observing the proceedings with an arched eyebrow- got pierced by the small boy's gaze, finally seeing the boy's eyes. The boy – Near, was it?- had the eeriest gaze he had ever seen. Near's eyes were large and of a dark grey color, but there seemed to be no life in them, their expression utterly flat, revealing nothing, as if the boy was an unearthly being detached from all reality.

Nevertheless, the small boy's cold impassiveness –at glaring opposites with Mello's temperamental personality- piqued Raito's interest. He could detect that there was a sharp, brilliant and calculating mind behind the flat, gray eyes.

Raito leaned away from the door, and smoothly made his way towards the small boy. He crouched on his knees, and looked at Near, who glanced up at him with an expressionless gaze.

"I'm Andrew," said Raito quietly.

The small boy nodded, gazing at his tower of dices. "I'm Near."

"I'm glad to meet you," said Raito, with a small, friendly smile on his lips.

Near fleetingly glanced at him, before he resumed playing with his dices, apparently indifferent to everything and anyone around him.

"Yes, yes," snapped Mello impatiently, who was still towering in front of them, "the little freak is Near. And I'm Mello and that's Matt. Let's skip any more stupid fucking introductions, and get to the matter-at-hand. Why the fuck did L speak to you, Andrew?"

"The answer is obvious," said Near, his gaze never leaving his work while he placed another dice on top of the quickly developing tower. "Andrew must have scored higher than any of us. Probably higher than L himself, since this is the first time that L has ever spoken to a student of Wammy's House."

"So you're competition?" spat Mello venomously, narrowing his eyes at Raito.

Raito gracefully stood up, smoothing his trousers with a hand, and glanced back at Mello. "What do you mean by competition?"

"He is," said Near in his flat tone of voice, still building his tower of dices. "Logically, if L spoke to him, it means that he's considering Andrew as the best candidate to succeed him."

"That's not fair!" bellowed Mello furiously, rounding on Raito, darkly glaring at him. "You're fucking new so why would L choose you? Even if you scored higher, why would L speak to you on your first day-"

"Because of his high test scores," repeated Near tonelessly, twirling a lock of hair with a finger.

"All of you are forgetting something," interjected Matt, who was leaning on a wall, his fingers quickly punching his videogame's buttons, his gaze fixed on the small screen. "L has spoken to one of the students before. He spoke to B. And B even said that he saw L in person."

"I took B into consideration," said Near, his voice deadpanned, "but we all know that L won't choose him. B has cracked under the pressure. It's obvious to anyone."

"Would you mind telling me what you're talking about?" said Raito calmly, suppressing his irritated impatience.

"I heard how L explained it to you," snapped Mello, viciously scowling at him. He gestured at the group, and added sharply, "Us three are the fucking best in this school. We are the fourth generation of L, of students who have a chance to take L's mantle. L will choose one of us. And now, apparently, you're also a possible successor."

Raito arched an eyebrow. "You three want to be chosen?"

"Of course," bit out Mello, crossing his arms over his chest, huffing like an irked buffalo. "Currently, the freak has the higher grades and tests scores in this school." He glared at Near, and yelled angrily, "BUT NOT FOR LONG, NEAR!" Swiftly, his gaze returned to Raito, and he continued crisply, "I follow, and then Matt. And we compete with each other academically, in order to be chosen as L's successor." He shot a smirk at Matt, and added, "Though not Matt. He has already accepted that he isn't fucking brilliant enough to best me or Near."

"I could best you, Mello," interjected Matt indifferently, still focused on his videogame, "the point is that I choose not to. It's your ambition and Near's to become L's successor, not mine. I rather spend my time and attention on other things instead of aiming to acquire L's life, which holds no interest to me."

"Yeah, what-frigging-ever," snorted Mello, rolling his eyes.

"And who's this B you spoke of?" inquired Raito.

"B is the oldest student here," replied Near detachedly, his gaze focused on his building of dices, while he kept twirling a lock of platinum hair with his finger. "He's seventeen years old. He was the third generation of L – a possible successor."

"Was?" said Raito, with a slight frown. "You said he has cracked under the pressure. What did you mean?"

"That he's fucking insane, that he's a nut-job, that he's gone bonkers," snapped Mello impatiently, "that he lost his flipping, bloody marbles, of course!" He nastily smirked at Raito, and added poisonously, "Did you believe that things here are fucking easy? Many crack under the pressure of attaining the best grades, in order to impress L and be considered a possible successor. B was the third generation of L, but he isn't anymore. Roger won't say a fucking word, of course, but it's obvious that L lost interest in B when the weirdo started biting students and gnawing his own fingers. B fucking cracked, but he wasn't the first. There was a girl, before. She was called A. We never met her, it was before our time. But rumors say that she was the second generation of L."

"A?" said Raito startled. "What happened to her?"

"Ah, yes," interjected Mello, nastily smirking at him. "L didn't want to call you A. Figures." He snorted acidly before flippantly waving a hand. "She killed herself."

"She killed herself," echoed Raito dryly, raising an eyebrow, "and this B bites people and chews his own fingers?"

"That's fucking right, pretty boy," drawled Mello, widely smirking at him. "Things here are freaking tough. And stay away from B. The fucking weirdo is truly insane."

"Don't call me 'pretty boy'," gritted out Raito sharply, narrowing his eyes at him.

Mello shot him a wide, nasty grin. "It's appropriate considering the fancy, poufy way you fucking dress and behave."

"It's called fashion sense, polite manners, and graceful elegance," said Raito tartly. "You could try it sometime, instead of dressing like a cheap boy-toy."

Matt broke into sniggers, and Mello immediately rounded on Raito, shooting a punch at his face, while furiously roaring, "I'M NOT A FUCKING BOY-TOY!"

Deftly, Raito easily ducked his head to a side, swerving away from Mello's punch, before he tightly grasped the boy's arm, brusquely holding him in place.

"Then don't call me a 'pretty boy'," he hissed, angrily narrowing his eyes at Mello.

"I'll get you for this!" snarled Mello furiously.

Raito tightened his grasp, making the boy wince in pain, and whispered quietly, quickly reining in his bad temper, "You can try, but I wouldn't recommend it. I don't want to have enemies, I rather be your friend. And I think it would be beneficial to you as well."

"I don't want to be your fucking friend!" snarled Mello, his eyes spitting fire.

Raito indifferently shrugged his shoulders, releasing the boy. "That's fine by me, too."

"You think you're so fucking great, right? Better than all of us," spat Mello virulently, darkly glaring at him while massaging his bruised arm. "You only bested me because you're fucking older and therefore have more frigging strength than me-"

"I don't think that I'm better than anyone," smoothly lied Raito, his lips quirking into a small, charming smile. "I just don't appreciate being attacked. Control your temper, and we'll have no problems between us."

"That's a logical suggestion," observed Near blandly, setting one more dice on his construction. "You allow your emotions to control you, Mello. That's why I will always beat you."

"I wasn't speaking to you, freak!" snarled Mello like a wild beast. "So shut your hole!" He rounded on Raito, and demanded irritably, "How fucking old are you, anyway?"

Raito was about to say 'thirteen' when he remembered that, actually, that day was his birthday, not that he would reveal such a key piece of information about himself. And he wasn't planning on celebrating it either. He had no one to celebrate it with, for starters, and attempting to do it would only depress him.

"Fourteen."

Mello snorted contemptuously. "You're a fucking dinosaur."

"How old are you?" said Raito, quirking an eyebrow whilst suppressing all annoyance from his voice.

"I'm twelve and Matt's eleven," replied Mello sharply. "The freak's ten."

Raito smirked at him, shooting him an arrogant, superior look. "So you're little children."

"I AM NOT A-"

"You are," interrupted Raito calmly, swiftly turning around and grabbing his luggage. "I have to find Roger. I'll see you later. Good-bye."

"See ya 'round, Andrew," said Matt, with a small grin on his lips while he briefly glanced at Raito, before focusing back on his videogame.

Raito nodded, casting him a soft, friendly smile, before he left the room, still hearing Mello angrily bellowing inside the library, and suspecting that Matt had stopped the boy from raging after him.

While he made his way along the hallway, trying to find the main parlor, Raito tiredly carded his fingers through his hair, neatly rearranging his auburn locks.

He had to admit that Wammy's House was the best place he could be in, given his goals, but putting up with Mello was going to take great effort and patience on his part. He had instantly realized -after being informed that the three boys were the best in school and the fourth generation of L, as they put it- that the best move would be to become 'friends' with them.

He inwardly grimaced. He had never wanted to have friends, since he had never deigned anyone worthy of his attention, even though people instantly tried to become his friends, fawning over him. But those three boys thankfully didn't fawn over him, and they could be useful to him later. There was no doubt in his mind that they were prodigal geniuses, though obviously not at the same level as him.

Raito frowned pensively. So Near thought that L had spoken to him because his test scores were even higher than those of L's… It was possible, and since L had never spoken to the other three boys, it was certain that he surpassed them. But they were still the brightest in school, so he would be amicable with them and gain their trust.

On the other hand, who was this B they had told him about? And was it true that B had met L personally? That was strange, and it could only mean that L had seriously considered B as the best successor at some point, before the boy 'cracked'. Therefore, B could possibly be even more brilliant than Near, Mello, and Matt - or B had been considered so before the three boys entered Wammy's House and dethroned him.

Nevertheless, despite Mello's warnings, it would be fruitful to get to know this B as well. If the boy had met L, then he could persuade B to tell him what L looked like. Discovering the identities of the three best detectives in the world was one of his tasks, after all, so that he could bring them down.

Satisfied, while he schemed, Raito finally opened a door which led to a sitting room, seeing Roger on a sofa, reading a newspaper with a pensive expression on his aged face.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me; I only own this story and make no profit from this.

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**Chapter 4**

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_February 29, 2000_

Raito woke up with his forehead drenched in sweat, with his throat aching and his limbs trembling. He groaned into his pillow, tightly grasping it in his balled hands. He had had another nightmare – would they never cease to plague his nights?

"Who's Sayu?"

Raito yelped and jumped in his bed, wildly looking around, his eyes squinting in the darkness.

"Who's there?" he demanded sharply, his narrowed eyes trying to discern something in the gloom of late winter night or perhaps early morning.

Suddenly, the lights of his bedroom flared, and Raito gasped when he saw a boy perched on his swivel chair, right beside his bed, staring at him.

The boy was older than him, with messy black hair which seemed to have never met a comb, pale white skin, and with the largest eyes he had ever seen. They were completely black, though, they seemed to hold a strange, crimson shade when they caught the light in a certain angle. There were dark bags under the boy's eyes, making them appear larger and eerier, while the boy unblinkingly gazed at him, with his head cocked to a side.

The older boy's gaze made him feel highly uncomfortable, but that wasn't the strangest thing about him. The boy was seated with his bare feet flat against the seat of the swivel chair, with his legs folded against his chest, and he held a glass pot of – was that jam?- while having two fingers stuck inside his mouth, as if tasting and swallowing something. And he was dressed in baggy, old jeans, and a long-sleeved, black t-shirt.

The older boy stuck out the fingers from his mouth, shoved them inside the glass jar, and pulled two fingers drenched in something gelatinous and pink, instantly shoving them a few inches away from Raito's lips.

"It's strawberry jam, it's very good," said the older boy, gazing unblinkingly at him. "Do you want some?"

"No, thanks," snapped Raito, glaring daggers at him, while anger swelled up in him. "What the hell are you doing in my bedroom? Who are you and what do you think you are doing-"

But his mouth clamped shut when his eyes caught sight of something. He had initially thought that the red, viscous thing dripping from the corner of the boy's lips was jam, but now he saw that it was actually drops of blood, and that the dark stains on the boy's black t-shirt were also blood. Moreover, the two fingers, still inches away from his lips, held not only jam, but they were bloodied as well.

Raito instinctively flinched and scrambled backwards on his bed, his back flat against the wall, while he breathed out in sudden realization, "You're B."

"I see that my infamy precedes me," said the older boy placidly, waving his two jam-loaded fingers at Raito. "Are you sure you don't want some? It's very tasty."

"No, I don't," whispered Raito, his wide eyes fixed on the boy, feeling, for the first time in his life, completely flummoxed, without knowing what to say.

"Pity," said B, shoving his two fingers inside his mouth and sucking them with a content and happy expression on his face.

Then, he yanked them out of his mouth, wiped clean, and he shot a friendly smile at Raito, and it was the scariest and most perturbing thing Raito had ever seen. It was toothy, and one corner of the lips was curled upwards higher than the other, giving it a crooked appearance.

"You're B," he repeated, gazing at him with slightly wide eyes.

"Actually, my name is Beyond Birthday. Everyone calls me 'B', but I want _you_ to call me 'Beyond'."

Finally, Raito pulled himself together, and more out of vindictive spite than true anger, he sneered snidely, "That's an idiotic alias. You could have chosen something else."

The older boy blinked at him, cocking his head to a side. "It's not my alias. I gave you my real name. Don't you like it?"

Raito pierced him with narrowed eyes, certain that the boy was trying to pull his leg. But no, he saw nothing but sincere honesty in those strange, dark crimson eyes. And he believed the boy. But who would name a child like that? Though Beyond was an orphan, so perhaps the boy had named himself-

"And you are…" said Beyond, his gaze flicking to the top of Raito's head. And suddenly, his lips quirked into a huge, crooked smile, that scary thing of his.

Raito instantly flattened his hair with a hand, wondering why the older boy was looking at it.

"You are Yaga-"

"WHAT THE HELL?!" shrieked Raito, instantly launching forwards and clasping his hand tightly against the older boy's mouth.

But the motion made the swivel chair -on which Beyond was precariously perched- roll backwards, and Raito, who had been kneeling on the edge of his bed, fell forward. His body crashed against the other boy's as they hit the floor, while the chair spun away from them.

Breathing heavily and haggardly, with his heart pounding a hundred miles per hour, Raito found himself straddling Beyond's waist, with his hand still pressed against the older boy's lips. Beyond was gazing up at him with a surprised expression on his large, wide eyes, but he didn't seem angry.

Feeling a surge of frantic alarm, Raito pressed his hand tighter against the boy's mouth, and he whispered sharply, "Don't say my name. I don't know how you found out, but don't say it."

Yesterday, after speaking with Roger and settling his class schedule for the school year, he had been showed into the bedroom suite he was currently occupying. And the first thing he had done before unpacking, was to the check every corner of his rooms, looking for hidden cameras or microphones – he had found none, not in his bedroom or his private bathroom. Nevertheless, he didn't want his real name to be said aloud, just in case.

"Do you understand?" hissed Raito, his voice harsh and demanding. "Don't say it!"

Beyond slightly frowned at him, before his expression turned to one of enjoyment. Abruptly, Raito felt something wet licking the palm he had pressed against the boy's mouth, followed by a sharp, piercing pain.

"GAH!" Raito immediately removed his hand from Beyond's mouth, staring at his palm with disbelief. The older boy had licked him, and – bitten him. There was a small drop of blood, delicately dribbling from a small cut in the middle of his palm.

"You're truly fucking insane!" spat Raito furiously, immediately standing up and away from the older boy.

Beyond, still flat on the floor, propped himself on his elbows, and shot Raito a wide, lopsided grin. "That's what they say, isn't it?" He cocked his head to aside, and asked softly, "Do you also think that?"

At the soft tone of voice, Raito gazed down at the older boy. There was an openly hurt look in Beyond's large eyes, but also a smirk gracing his blood-stained lips, and Raito didn't quite know how to interpret the opposing, incongruent expressions.

"Yes, I do," said Raito flatly, frowning at him.

"Oh," mumbled Beyond quietly, with a hint of dejection. Then he licked his lips with relish, and added cheerfully, "That disappoints me. Too bad."

The older boy quickly picked himself up from the floor, and he towered in front of Raito, with his shoulders slightly hunched forwards. He wasn't standing in a threatening manner, but that didn't put Raito at ease.

Beyond was older and therefore taller and larger than him, and Raito hated to be in any physical disadvantage; that was why he hadn't retaliated with aggression of any kind, as he would have done by now. Furthermore, despite Beyond's insane quirkiness, Raito could detect a sharp intellect behind those wide, dark crimson-shaded eyes, and the boy seemingly acted without following any rational pattern of thought or logic.

In conclusion, Raito didn't know how to handle him. Beyond acted in an unexpected manner that followed no rational behavioral pattern, and Raito couldn't decide how he should act around the other boy – with gentleness, aggressiveness, coldness or indifference?

What was the best approach to gain Beyond's trust in order to use and manipulate him later? Regardless, whatever tactic served him better, Raito was too tired and sleepy at present, and under those circumstances his mind didn't work at its best. Thus, he just wanted the other boy to leave. This wasn't how he had planned on meeting B. He had wanted to be his collected self during their first meeting, not like this - woken by nightmares in the middle of the night, with a gargoyle-like stalker perched on a chair, creepily watching him in his sleep.

Raito shuddered, and decided to make a move towards the door, in order to let the other boy know that his presence wasn't wanted. But he stopped in mid-stride. Beyond knew his real name, he didn't know how, but there it was. Therefore, he should show himself friendly, or the other boy could get angry and retaliate by disclosing the name to others.

Raito gritted his teeth together – he hated the situation he was in. He felt trapped. Beyond had something to hold over his head.

"Who's Sayu?" said Beyond quietly, gazing unblinkingly at him. "You were calling that name, in your sleep, in your nightmares."

"She's my sister," replied Raito stiffly, trying his best to be friendly, but failing.

He was tired, grumpy, and he hated that someone else had blackmail material to use against him. If only he had slept his eight hours! With a little more sleep, he would be his suave, smooth, collected self again. He would be able to deal with the freak promptly, in an amicable and charming manner. But currently, tried as he did, he couldn't call forth an ounce of 'friendliness' for the other boy.

"Oh," said Beyond, intently staring at him. "Where is she?"

"She's dead," said Raito flatly, narrowing his eyes at him. "Why did you come into my room? For how long did you observe me-"

Abruptly, Beyond shot forward a finger, gently trailing it down Raito's cheek. Immediately, startled and horrified, Raito flinched backwards, taking a step away from the older boy.

"Sorry," said Beyond, dropping his hand. "You cried in your sleep. I just wanted to clean your tear-tracks." He cocked his head to a side. "And perhaps taste your tears-"

"I don't cry and don't touch me again!" hissed Raito angrily, wiping his face with his pajama's sleeve. "And answer my questions!"

"I came into your room because I heard about you, and I wanted to see who the new student was," replied Beyond calmly. "Your door wasn't locked-"

"Because my door doesn't have any locks," snapped Raito crisply, but he was certainly going to prop a chair against the door handle to keep this freak out!

Beyond shrugged his shoulders. "None of the doors here have locks. Anyway, I heard Mello talking about you." He cocked his head to a side, gazing unblinkingly at him while a small, lopsided grin spread over his lips. "He was right, you are a pretty boy-"

"Don't call me that!" spat Raito furiously, his hands clenching into trembling fists.

"But you are," said Beyond, letting out a crowing laughter, and it was the creepiest sound Raito had ever heard, making the small hairs of his nape stand up. "You're a pretty boy, a pretty boy, a pretty boy-"

"Fine!" bit out Raito, darkly glaring at him, an eyebrow twitching with fury. "Call me that if you want, but shut the hell up!"

"Deal," said Beyond instantly, smirking at him with supreme satisfaction.

Raito deeply inhaled, trying to gather patience, while reining his temper with insurmountable effort. He pierced Beyond with his eyes, and demanded acidly, "How do you know my real name?"

Beyond's smirk widened, his eyes glinting with enjoyment, but he didn't beep a word.

"How. do. you. know. my. name?" gritted out Raito slowly and sharply, his voice as hard as grinding stones.

"I'm not going to tell you," replied Beyond calmly, utterly unfazed. He cocked his head to side, and added in a soft mumble, "If it matters so much to you, I won't disclose it to anyone. I promise it. I'll never reveal it. I'll take it to my grave."

Raito pierced him with narrowed eyes, inspecting every feature of the older boy's face, seeing nothing but honesty. He inwardly cursed the boy to the deepest pits of hell. Beyond somehow knew his name, but there was nothing he could do about the matter.

He couldn't kill the boy for that reason alone; Beyond was no criminal who deserved that rightful punishment. But, perhaps he would find something to hold over the boy's head, to use as blackmail material, to insure that Beyond would truly keep the secret.

Regardless, what perturbed him the most was _how_ Beyond had managed to discover his real name. He had been very careful in modifying and deleting his pictures in Japan's government agencies and in the databases of his school. He didn't even think that Roger or L could discover his true name, not until he went back to Japan to use his true persona in order to attend university. So how had-

"I see that you're trying to unravel the mystery," said Beyond, widely grinning at him lopsidedly. "You're wasting your time. But if you're worried about L finding out, he won't. Not by the means I used."

Raito's eyes snapped to his, and deeply frowned. "What means are those?"

"I'm not going to tell you, pretty boy, pretty boy," said Beyond in a delighted sing-song, though his lips were curved in a large smirk. "But you can rest assured that I'm probably the only one who knows your real name."

"Alright," grumbled Raito tiredly, just wishing to go back to sleep and forget that this had ever happened.

"What does L call you?" abruptly asked Beyond, cocking his head to a side.

"Andrew," replied Raito stiffly, seating down on the edge of his bed. "Andrew-kun."

"I don't like it," declared Beyond petulantly, scrunching his nose while grabbing the pot of jam from the floor, before he pulled the swivel chair besides Raito's bed, perching himself on it, with that strange posture of his, like a gargoyle of some gothic cathedral. "I'll call you something else." He tilted his head to aside, gazing at Raito. "Your first name means Light, right?"

"You know Japanese?" said Raito, glancing up at him with surprise.

"Yes," replied Beyond impassively. "L knows Japanese, so I learned it."

Raito frowned, wondering why the older boy considered that to be a reason for learning a language.

"I'll call you Light-kun," said Beyond, toothily grinning at him. "I like it-"

"You can't," snapped Raito dourly, narrowing his eyes at him. "For anyone who knows Japanese, it's too easy to deduce my real name from it-"

"I'll only use it when we're alone," interrupted Beyond, his lopsided grin widening. "It's either 'Light-kun' in private, or I'll always address you as 'pretty boy', in public as well."

"Fine," spat Raito ill-temperedly, "but be certain that we're alone and that no one is listening when you call me 'Light'."

"Okay," said Beyond, his lips curving into a satisfied smirk.

Raito darkly scowled at him, before he opened his hand and gently massaged around the bite wound, trying to clean it from his blood.

"Can I taste it?"

Raito's head flung up, as he irritably scowled at him. "Taste what?"

"Your blood," said Beyond, looking at him as if believing that Raito had suddenly gone daft.

"Of course not!" snapped Raito, with appalled horror. "Taste your own freaking blood, if that's your kink - not _mine_!"

"I do that already," interjected Beyond placidly, cocking his head to a side. "But I would rather taste yours."

"Well, you can't," bit out Raito through gritted teeth. "Now, can you leave me alone?"

"You want me to go away?" asked Beyond, blinking at him, his eyes wide.

"Yes," said Raito crisply, glaring at him, "I want to get back to sleep." He checked his wristwatch, and added angrily, "It's four in the morning!"

No wonder why he was having so much trouble in containing his anger. Of course that he couldn't be his collected, impassive, sly self at this time of night. He needed his bloody sleep to function correctly!

"You sleep too much," said Beyond calmly, sinking into the swivel chair, with his legs still bent against his chest, while he shoved two fingers into his pot of strawberry jam, swiftly sticking them into his mouth with a merry expression on his face. With a popping sound, he pulled out the now clean fingers, and added matter-of-factly, "I only sleep three hours a day. I made myself become used to it, and now my mind works faster and better."

"Fascinating," said Raito blandly, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Go away, Beyond, I want to sleep."

"Nope," said Beyond, lopsidedly grinning at him, "I enjoy your company."

"Well, I don't enjoy yours!" spat Raito irately, his head beginning to throb.

"That's not a nice thing to say," muttered Beyond flatly, frowning at him, before he calmly shoved two jam-loaded fingers into his mouth.

Raito groaned, and ducked his head to grasp it with his hands, feeling a headache looming in the distance.

"What do I have to do for you to leave?" he grumbled, thinking that he would have no choice but employ violence to shove the older boy out of his room. And it wasn't something he was looking forward to, since the other boy was vastly much taller and larger than him.

"Let's talk about L. After that, I'll leave," said Beyond sweetly and cajolingly, as though a little boy trying to steal someone's ice-cream. "He spoke to you, right?"

Raito slowly raised his head, to glower at him. "It's obvious that you know about that already. I suppose Mello blabbed?"

"Yes, the whole school knows," replied Beyond cheerfully, staring at him with his large, wide eyes, while his lips curved into a smirk.

"Lucky me," sneered Raito sarcastically.

"You are," stated Beyond in a serious, deadpanned tone of voice, intently gazing at him. "Lucky, I mean."

Raito frowned at him. "Why is that?"

"Because L is interested in you," replied Beyond quietly, all joy vanishing as his shoulders hunched forward even further, while his gaze became unfocused. "If L spoke to you on your first day, it means that he's seriously considering you as his successor. Even if he doesn't know you, your tests results must have been superb. And Mello disclosed that L said that he liked your personality-"

Raito scoffed scathingly. "L doesn't like my personality. He doesn't know me at all." He gazed at the older boy, and sneered, "And don't tell me that you're another one of L's sycophantic followers?"

Beyond blinked at him, and replied calmly, "I'm not. I'm his other half."

Raito checked himself on time and didn't gape at him, but he said with disgust, "What – like his romantic partner? You like L in that way? You're involved with him in a relationship-"

"NO!" interrupted Beyond, his expression appalled and his eyes even wider. He let out a crowing laughter, which sounded tinged with madness to Raito's ears, as he then added in a grave voice, "I didn't mean it that way. But I AM his other half."

"Meaning what, exactly?" asked Raito, while piercing him with his eyes, curious and interested in the answer.

"Simply that, Light-kun," said Beyond dismissively, loading two fingers with jam and happily sticking them into his mouth, gnawing at them.

When Raito saw a trail of blood dripping from the corner of the boy's lips, he shot a hand forward and pulled out Beyond's fingers from his mouth, frowning at him. "Don't do that."

He cursed under his breath when his action resulted in blood dripping on the floor, since Beyond's fingertips were split open with raw wounds.

Angry and tired, Raito jumped to his feet and went to his bathroom, swiftly grabbing two hand-towels and taking them to the sink, to splatter some warm water on them, while wondering why he was helping the older boy. He didn't care about Beyond one iota and he certainly didn't like him.

Nevertheless, with a deep frown on his face, he took the towels and grabbed the first-aid kit from the small closet under the sink. He went back to his bedroom and promptly sat on his bed, briskly grabbing Beyond's injured hand.

The older boy was gazing at him with wide eyes, completely silent. Raito shot him a dark glare, before he carefully wrapped one of the warm, drenched towels around the boy's fingers, rolling it tightly. He used the other hand-towel to clean his own palm, then his face, and finally the blood stains on the floor.

He went back to the bathroom and dropped the used towel on the laundry-basket, before going back to his bedroom and sitting down on his bed once again.

"Light-kun, you helped me," whispered Beyond softly, lopsidedly grinning at him. "You care about me."

"Let me make myself perfectly clear. I don't care about you," snapped Raito, irked beyond measure as he narrowed his eyes at him. "Why do you do that, anyway?"

Beyond shrugged his hunched shoulders, and replied placidly, "I like it. It feels good."

"Well, don't do it," bit out Raito sharply, "it's self-destructive. You must be brilliant, since you're here, and smart people don't do things like that. If you need to relieve stress, then practice some sport."

"See, you do care," chirped Beyond joyfully, widely grinning at him.

"I don't," gritted out Raito as he fulminated him with a deathly glare. "You're seventeen years old, why are you so childish?"

"I have my reasons," said Beyond shortly, his grin drooping.

"Fine," said Raito with deep annoyance, before he gestured at the boy's fingers wrapped in the towel. "Does Roger know about this?"

"Of course he does," replied Beyond impassively, gazing pensively at the fingers of his uninjured hand, before sticking them into the jam pot, contently swirling them inside. "He often takes me to the infirmary, but I hate it there. I always escape. And in the past, he forced me to see some psychologists." He shot Raito a wide, nasty smirk, and added with vicious relish, "But I always managed to infuriate the doctors, and none of them wanted to treat me any longer. So I don't have to put up with that rubbish anymore. I can be very mean, scary, and cruel if I want to."

"I don't doubt that," muttered Raito. He pointed at the boy's towel-wrapped hand, and said commandingly, "Unroll it and check if you need to use the first-aid kit."

Beyond licked clean the uninjured fingers he had stuck in the jam, creepily chortling with delight, and then obeyed. As soon as his other fingers were towel-free, he placed his hand, palm up, on Riato's knees, gazing expectantly at him with wide eyes.

Raito glanced down at the hand, seeing the older boy's fingertips still oozing blood from the sharp, uneven cuts, and his nose slightly wrinkled with disgust.

He snapped his eyes to Beyond's, and demanded briskly, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm waiting for you to bandage my fingers," murmured Beyond softly, his wide gaze -fixed on Raito's eyes- still expectant, while wiggling his injured fingertips in a playful manner.

"I'm not going to heal you," hissed Raito acidly. "You can do it yourself!" He grabbed the first-aid kit, brusquely thrusting it to the older boy. "Here, use it."

Beyond instantly removed his hand from Raito's knees, and said petulantly with a pout, "If you don't do it, then I don't want my fingers to heal."

"Fine by me, it's your decision," bit out Raito utterly unfazed as he tossed the first-aid kit on his bed. "Now leave."

"I said I would leave after we discussed L," said Beyond pointedly, crouching back into the swivel chair, and making it spin several times, while high-pitched chortles bubbled from his throat.

"You refused to answer my questions about him," interjected Raito sharply, narrowing his eyes at the spinning boy.

"I answered them, in my way," said Beyond, stomping a bare foot on the floor, halting the chair in mid-spin, while he smirked at him. "The problem is that you don't have enough information to deduce the true meaning of my words. Someday, you will, Light-kun."

"Whatever," said Raito irritably, before he pierced him with his eyes. "Let's see if you can give me a clear answer to my next question. Did you truly meet L in person?"

"I did, Light-kun," replied Beyond, his smirk widening. He swiftly grabbed the pot he had laid on the floor, and licked the jam around the edges, before adding, "Even if he doesn't realize it, I know him better than anyone else. Don't ask me how or why, though."

"Fine," gritted out Raito. "Then tell me how he looks like."

Beyond pierced him with his eyes, his expression drastically changing into one of seriousness as he demanded stiffly, "Why do you want to know that?"

"Simple curiosity," said Raito smoothly, shrugging his shoulders.

"You lie," breathed out Beyond, to then abruptly grin at him widely, with an excited glint in his eyes. "You don't like him, Light-kun."

"I don't know the man," interjected Raito flatly. "Therefore, I don't like him nor dislike him."

"You will like him," stated Beyond, sourly nodding at himself before he intently gazed at him with his large, eerie, crimson-shaded eyes, "but you will like me even more - always."

Raito deeply frowned at him, before he snidely scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. "So what can you tell me about him?"

"Nothing much, for now," replied Beyond, smirking at him while his eyes glinted with true enjoyment. He let out a crow of laughter, and added with chortling amusement, "It wouldn't be fair if I gave you an advantage over him, would it?"

"An advantage?" said Raito sharply, narrowing his eyes at him. "You're speaking as if I would want such a thing."

"But you do," interjected Beyond, knowingly smirking at him. "I am weird and a bit insane, I admit it proudly, but as you said, I am brilliant, Light-kun. And I've always perceived more than most. Never underestimate the power of madness. Never underestimate me, Light-kun."

"I don't," hissed Raito angrily, "and you're speaking as if I had a reason to fear you. You're not my enemy, are you? Or are you planning on becoming it?"

"No, I won't be your enemy, Light-kun," whispered Beyond softly, intently gazing at him with his wide eyes. He paused during a brief stretch of silence, and then abruptly stated while he stood up, "We're going to become true friends. Our first and only friendship, ever, for both of us."

Raito's eyes snapped up to his, and he scoffed nastily. "Don't bet on that."

"We will, Light-kun. I know it," said Beyond simply, before he turned around and slouched away from the room, lovingly cradling his pot of strawberry jam in his arms.

Raito was left with a dark scowl on his face, but he swiftly stood up and propped a chair under the door's handle. He wasn't going to be ambushed like this again, and he certainly didn't want anyone creepily observing him while he slept.

He shuddered, also remembering the feel of Beyond's bloodied fingers caressing his cheek, and he quickly entered his bathroom, rubbing his face clean with soap and water. Then he went back to his bedroom and flung himself inside the bed, curling and burrowing under the warm, puffy duvet.

Right now he was going to sleep, but he would find a way to deal with the weirdos of the school tomorrow – his first day of class. Despite how Beyond freaked him out, he needed to get 'close' to him.

He didn't exactly know why, but he had believed everything the older boy had said – he had felt that the boy was being sincere. Therefore, since Beyond had met L in person, he would need to find a way to glean that information from the older boy; anything related to L would be very useful to him.

Furthermore, he would also become 'friends' with Mello, Matt, and Near, and he had already perceived how he should act with each of them in order to be trusted. Mello and Matt would be easy, but Near wouldn't. He didn't think that Near would ever consider anyone a friend, and much less trust anyone, but he could get close to the small boy, anyway. And he knew that Near would allow it, because both of them wanted to gauge how bright and cunning the other was. For that reason alone, he knew that he could deal with Near.

In the end, unexpectedly enough, his greatest challenge would be Beyond. The older boy had won this first round, since Raito hadn't been able to mask his anger and Beyond had managed to unsettle him from the beginning. Because of that, Raito knew that he had revealed more about himself than Beyond had. Moreover, all of Beyond's answers had been strange and unclear. Nevertheless, he wouldn't be bested by the freak.

His last conscious thought, before he entered a deep slumber, was that he would proceed with his plans. He would get close to the four boys, so that he could use them in the future, and he would be the best student in Wammy's House, so that L remained interested in him.

A sleepy smirk curled his lips. Yes, he would play of all them, and he would outsmart and best them. He would attain all his goals, and his revenge.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me; I only own this story and make no profit from this.

Warning: Mention of rape and some other nasty stuff.

* * *

**Chapter ****5**

* * *

_June__ 10, 2000_

"See?" said Beyond, chortling with creepy delight while he pointed at the laptop screen. "L is a genius! Do you see how he tricked the Paris Blue Rapist? He used a decoy – the girl was working for L all these months, passing off as a striptease-club dancer!"

Raito nodded while he clicked his mouse, scrolling down the report they were reading. During the last few months he had found a common ground with Beyond. Both of them were very interested in the cases that L, Eraldo Coil, and Deneuve solved. And after classes, they usually went back to Raito's room, to hack into police databases to find the reports submitted by L, or the other two detectives, after cracking a case.

Currently, L had solved the mysterious case of a serial rapist who had spent the last three months attacking young women who worked in Parisian nightclubs or striptease clubs. The rapist never left any hairs, fingerprints or semen after raping the girls – which were all blond, petite and beautiful. The victims were injected with a sedative and heroin, and the criminal always wore a mask when attacking them. Thus, none of the victims had been conscious enough to describe what happened to them or to remember anything about the rapist's features. The only clue was that the victims woke up in some dark street alley, their bodies nude and painted in blue, while their insides had been torn, as if raped by a large, brutish man.

In the end, L had discovered that the rapist wasn't a man at all, but a woman who had been using a gadget which was a dildo that could be strapped onto someone. Raito shuddered with disgust and horror. He hadn't known that those things existed, but he could recognize why L had suspected that the rapist was a woman all along, and not a man. It was because the victims showed no trace of having been raped with the use of a condom, yet there wasn't any release of semen inside the victims, either.

L had found the rapist by unorthodoxly employing a street prostitute to work in a striptease club. The young prostitute was a petite, beautiful, blond girl, as the rest of the victims. L had caught the rapist after the woman had dosed the girl's drink with a sedative, then surreptitiously taking her away from the club after the girl's shift. L, and the French police officers assigned to him, had waited until the woman took the girl to a dark alley, and injected heroin in her. Then, under L's orders, the police had apprehended the woman. She had been a frustrated painter, who had been working in nightclubs to earn a living, before being dismissed after attacking a customer. It had also been revealed by L that the woman had been sexually abused by her own mother, when she was a young girl.

It was a nasty case, but Raito had become used to that after studying with Beyond so many cases solved by L, Eraldo Coil or Deneuve. Furthermore, it was Beyond who always had a deeper insight into the minds of the criminals; that's why he allowed the older boy to study the cases with him.

Also, while Beyond usually commended L's brilliance, crowing with delighted laughter while licking strawberry jam from his ever-present pot, Raito managed to surreptitiously ask questions to know more about L.

Despite Beyond's cryptic answers, so far, he had gleaned that L was a young man, between the age of twenty to early thirties, possibly British, and certainly European.

None of these things could be deduced from the way L wrote the reports he sent to the police forces he worked with, when solving a case. Though, whilst reading reports on other cases, written by Eraldo Coil or Denueve, Raito picked up some clues about them. Coil expressed himself like a self-taught, middle-aged, American man, whilst Denueve expressed herself like a cultured, wealthy woman, possibly French. But neither of those clues said much to Raito, since the detectives could be easily masking themselves to appear so. It still frustrated him to no end that he wasn't advancing on his task of finding solid clues about Eraldo Coil's identity.

Regardless, Raito was becoming more adept in picking up clues and solving cases as well, thanks to the classes he was taking in Wammy's House.

As every student, he had to take the core subjects for someone of his age, but in an advanced level, given the prodigal minds of everyone in the school. He took Math, Physics, Chemistry, History, Law, Literature, and two languages of his choosing – French and Mandarin. Apart from that, all students had to take Gym, which belied what it truly was – a kind of training in several martial arts and defensive skills. The older students could also choose to learn how to use guns and other weapons, always under very strict supervision. But Raito wouldn't be learning that until he turned sixteen.

Nevertheless, what interested him the most were the specialized subjects. In his year, they were taking Criminal Law and Criminology, Sociology of Crime and Deviance, Psychiatry and Psychology for Criminal Profiling, Forensic Studies, and Qualitative Research Methods in Criminology.

Needless to say, that Raito found himself with little spare time, given the amount of subjects he had, the stack of homework he had to turn in every week, and the hours he had to spend to study for his monthly tests.

Indeed, besides the monthly tests on their subjects, all students had to take the tests provided by Roger, every three months. They were exactly the same type of tests that Raito had taken the first time he had met Roger, and all grades and tests scores were pinned in the bulletin board which hung outside Roger's office.

Month after month, Raito's grades in his classes were the best, and his scores in Roger's tests were the highest, followed by Near, Mello, Matt, and then Beyond. Raito understood that making all students' grades and tests scores public, by pinning the results on the bulletin board, was a way to maintain the high competitive environment of the school.

Regardless, even if he wasn't affected by it, since he was the best, he sometimes thought it was detrimental to other students.

Mello usually raged in fury and loudly cursed when he saw that he was now listed in third place, Near always appeared utterly unflappable and impassive about his second place, Matt honestly didn't seem to care about it, and Beyond merely crowed with laughter. They weren't the problem; others were.

In the school, there were fifteen children, without counting himself. Ten of them were younger than him, two were of his same age and thus, they were his classmates, and three, including Beyond, were older.

The stress caused by the school's ambiance of fierce competition was tangible in the case of younger students, and in one of the oldest. There was a young Slavic boy, in Mello's year, who could often been seen thumping his head against walls, before some teacher stopped him. There were a pair of ten-year-old Indian twins, Mathematical prodigies, who spoke to no one but themselves, and who could often be seen seated on the floor of the dining room, rocking back and forth, seemingly aware of nothing but each other. And Zane, or Z, who was the oldest student next to Beyond, was a lanky boy who wore thick eyeglasses, and who always chewed on his bottom lip and muttered and stuttered under his breath, jerkily clasping his hands together, when exam week approached.

As Mello had said, things in Wammy's House were tough. Nevertheless, the children were always taken good care of. The teachers were gentle and attentive with the youngest students, who seemed to be the ones who craved love and attention the most – with the exception of Near, Matt, and Mello. Moreover, there was a doctor, a psychologist and a nurse who lived in Wammy's House, and all students had to go through a monthly health check with them, including a session with the psychologist.

Also, all students were provided with anything they needed, added to a generous monthly allowance which they could spend as they saw fit. Nevertheless, no student was too coddled or overprotected, and what Raito appreciated the most was that independence and privacy was valued and given. As long as you didn't destroy property, disrupted a class, or harmed a teacher or fellow student, you could do whatever you liked in your spare time. In fact, they were encouraged to do so, besides studying.

Thus, Raito managed to continue his 'hobbies': studying cases solved by the three detectives; sending emails as Y, giving his insights and discoveries on interesting on-going cases taken by one of the three detectives; still working as a free-lance programmer to improve the firewalls of the bank which had employed him, since he wanted to gather and save as much money as he could, to be used when he returned to Japan; and getting 'close' to those who interested him.

He always allotted sometime to play videogames with Matt, often accompanied by Mello. Though he had always thought that it was a waste of time, he forced himself to do it, and he was quite good at it, allowing the other boy to sometimes defeat him.

Nevertheless, he always left Matt's room with his ears ringing with the astounding plethora of lewd language and curse words employed by the younger boys. It was certain that he was now a reluctant connoisseur of vulgar expressions. But it was worth it, since he became 'friendly' with Matt, who was a computer whiz, a genius in everything electronic, and a prodigal hacker – much as Raito himself.

Furthermore, he managed to ingratiate himself with Mello, after discovering his addiction and gifting the boy with a large box filled with chocolate bars. He discovered that Mello was a genius in anything mechanical; the boy could become a brilliant engineer, if he wasn't so bent in becoming L's successor.

Mello spent most of his free time fixing an old motorcycle that had been left to accumulate dust in Wammy's House's garden shed. And Raito sometimes helped him with it, learning much, since fixing mechanical things could be useful in the future. He also discovered that Mello could pick any lock, and open any security box he wished. The boy was also quite crafty in producing fake ID cards or driving licenses – though Raito had wisely refrained from asking Mello about that 'hobby' of his.

Other times, he frequently sought Near in the library, and he would sit down with him, quietly assessing him while the other boy allowed him to join in the construction of structures made of dices, domino pieces or tarot cards. Raito had also found out that the boy enjoyed chess, and he had taken to bring a chess board with him, silently playing against Near. Thus, he had learned that Near was a very calculating and impassively cold player, his face never revealing anything. But from the strategies that the boy used in chess, he could tell that Near wasn't a man of action. The small boy preferred to observe in silence, test his opponent by using several defensive tactics, and at the very end, unexpectedly switch to offense.

But who he saw the most was, inevitably, Beyond.

After the first time they met, Raito had propped a chair under his door's handle, just to be awoken early in the following morning by a madly bellowing voice, yelling 'Andrew!' at the top of his lungs. Raito had groaned and stuffed his head under the pillow. But Beyond had kept screaming his name –gratefully the fake one- while furiously kicking and pounding on his door. When Raito had heard the rush of feet and Roger's voice, he had been forced to open his door.

He had encountered Beyond, struggling fiercely against Roger and Wammy's psychologist, screaming hysterically, crowing with mad laughter, and attempting to bite his holders. The older boy had also managed to wake up the rest of the school, who mostly stared at the scene with wide eyes.

Finally, Raito, grumpy, tired and irked, had instinctively placed a hand on Beyond's shoulders, and the older boy had immediately stilled and quieted down, gazing at him with those wide, crimson-shaded eyes. When Beyond had stopped struggling, Roger and the psychologist had released him; the psychologist staring at Raito and Beyond with puzzlement and disbelief, while Roger had gazed at Raito with a troubled and assessing glint in his eyes.

Roger hadn't been the only one. Near's flat gray gaze had flicked between Raito and Beyond, as if filing away and computing information in his mind. Mello had sharply looked at them, before snidely scoffing "You're friends with the frigging insane weirdo!? If you're that fucking desperate for company, Andrew, stick with me!". And Matt had gazed at Beyond, with a frown on his forehead, yet he had seemed to understand something, since the boy had nodded to himself and promptly left.

From that day onward, Raito had learned not to block his door, and he always woke up to see Beyond perched on the swivel chair, fixedly gazing at him while licking jam from his fingers. But Raito had reluctantly become used to it. And now, he merely curtly greeted the other boy in the morning, before entering his bathroom, closing the door, and showering. By the time he came out, Beyond was never there.

Indeed, Raito had soon discovered Beyond's two obsessions: L and Raito himself.

Every day after class, Beyond sought him out, when the boy wasn't busy with his own studies. And they usually discussed the cases taken by L, Coil, or Deneuve. While sometimes, after much prodding from Beyond's part, they watched a movie. Having never been interested in such things, Raito used the time to observe Beyond, trying to understand how the boy's strange mind worked – still, he hadn't succeeded in that.

"Well, that's it," said Beyond cheerfully, making the swivel chair spin, while he cackled with laughter. "Another case closed by L. He's fantastic! Didn't I tell you?"

"Yes, fantastic," muttered Raito tartly, inwardly seething.

The Paris Blue Rapist case had been the only one for which he hadn't sent any emails to the involved police force, under the pseudonym of Y. The reason was pathetically simple; he hadn't known that there existed such things that would allow a woman to rape another. Nevertheless, his innocence in all sexual matters was soon fading away, given all the things he read about in the reports written by the three detectives.

"Let's watch a movie!" said Beyond, lopsidedly grinning at him, while stomping down a bare foot to halt his spins.

The older boy jumped to his feet, and slouched his way towards Raito's TV and DVD-player set, fishing out a DVD case and waving it at Raito, clutching his pot of jam with his other hand.

Raito fleetingly glanced at the DVD case, and groaned, "I'm not watching 'Silence of the Lambs' again!"

"Why not?" said Beyond, cocking his head to side, smirking at him. "It's your favorite, Light-kun."

"No," interjected Raito calmly, "it's yours, and you've made me watch it four times already. You even pestered me to the point that I had to read Thomas Harris' three novels, just because you wanted me to know more about 'Lecter'... Doesn't it bore you?"

"Nope," said Beyond, his smirk widening, before he chortled happily. "I think Hannibal Lecter is the most fascinating fictional character."

"Yes, you would, wouldn't you?" muttered Raito, glancing at Beyond's gnawed fingers, holding the pot of jam. "Yet the character didn't canibilize himself for the joy of it. You might want to remember that."

"You're right," said Beyond unfazed, "but you leave me no option." He grinned at him, shoving two jam-loaded fingers into his mouth, before adding, "You still won't allow me to taste your blood-"

"Nor will I ever," interjected Raito coolly.

"Not even nibble your fingers, Light-kun?" inquired Beyond softly, gazing at him with his large, wide eyes, with an innocent expression in them. "I promise I won't bite, just nibble."

"No," said Raito flatly.

"Then I will bite others, Light-kun," said Beyond in a sing-song, letting out a crow of laughter.

Raito gazed at him, utterly unruffled. "Try it again, and Roger will end up committing you in some mental institution."

"Ow," cooed Beyond, gazing at him with wide eyes, his lips curling into a crooked smile. "Would you miss me, Light-kun?" He slouched forward to lean down inches away from Raito, and whispered softly into Raito's ear, "Would you? Tell me the truth, Light-kun."

Raito glanced up at the wide, expectant eyes, but he simply shut down his laptop, before standing up and away from Beyond.

He checked his wristwatch, and said calmly, "I can't watch the movie with you. I'm meeting Vivi to do our Criminal Law and Criminology homework."

"You're meeting V?" snapped Beyond, abruptly banging the DVD movie case and the pot of jam on Raito's desk.

"Yes, I am," replied Raito nonchalantly. "She should be here any minute now."

V, Viviane, or Vivi –as most people called her- was one of Raito's classmates, along with Xandre, or X. The three of them were the only fourteen-year-old kids in the school, and thus, Raito had all his classes only with them. Furthermore, Viviane was upheld as the beauty of Wammy's House, sought after by every boy over the age of thirteen. But that wasn't the reason why Raito had 'befriended' her. She had a quick tongue and sharp mind, and her forte was Law.

Raito could easily envision her becoming a brilliant barrister or lawyer, and they usually met to do their homework together. Not because he needed any help, of course, but she was a very good and efficient researcher, who could find laws and book passages in a matter of a few minutes, having read almost every single book on Law in Wammy's House's library.

Moreover, Viviane had a quiet dignity about herself that Raito appreciated. She was well-mannered, quiet during their study sessions, and respectful. On top of that, to his enjoyment and delight, she was politely cold and uninterested towards everyone else – except him. Raito could easily make her blush with a single charming smile, and he enjoyed the power he held over her. Thus, he always acted like a courteous gentleman around her, sometimes purposely making her fluster around him.

Certainly, he didn't like her – he didn't 'like' anyone- but she was useful, and could be even more in the future. Thus, he was going to keep her trailing after him like a love-sick puppy. That was the only flaw he saw in her – that she didn't realize or care that her infatuation for him placed her at a disadvantage, begging to be exploited, and that she allowed it. For that reason, he felt no scruples in using her. If she didn't realize how easily he manipulated her, then it was her own fault, not his. Hence, he had the right to use her as he saw fit, since she was such a fool as to allow it.

"I don't understand what you see in that bitch," said Beyond sharply, cocking his head to a side, though there was no smirk or lopsided grin gracing his lips. "Why do you spend time with her?"

Raito gazed at him unsurprised. He knew that Beyond was mean and nasty with everyone else, and that the older boy lashed a sharp tongue at others, except him. And ever since he had begun spending some of his time with Viviane, Beyond's snide dislike for her had speedily risen – Raito could almost call it hatred.

"She's a bitch, she's a bitch, she's a bitch," said Beyond in a sing-song, letting out a crowing chortle.

"Stop that," snapped Raito crisply. He was always irked when Beyond started acting like a demented child.

"Why should I?" interjected Beyond, smirking at him while he grabbed his pot of jam, licking the edges with delighted relish.

"Because," replied Raito coolly, "I don't think that you're as crazy as you pretend to be."

Beyond shoved two fingers dripping with jam into his mouth, his expression pensive. Then, he stuck out the clean fingers, cocked his head to a side, and stared at Raito with wide eyes. "I never pretend. How I act is how I am. And you didn't answer my question."

"I spend time with her," said Raito nonchalantly, "because I like her."

"She's not good enough for you, Light-kun," bit out Beyond venomously, before he let out a sharp, creepy chuckle. He gazed at him with wide eyes, and added softly, "And you lie. You don't really like her, do you? Not in that way, at least."

Raito smirked at him, crossing his arms over his chest. "And what if I did? She's the prettiest girl in school, and one of the brightest… Someday, I think, I would like to have a girlfriend-"

"You lie," stated Beyond, staring at him with his large, wide, crimson-shaded eyes. He shrugged, and added cheerfully, "And I wouldn't let you have a girlfriend, anyway."

"What?" hissed Raito, narrowing his eyes at him, while he uncrossed his arms. "I don't see what it has to do with you, B."

"Don't call me B," snapped Beyond, hunching his shoulders forward even more. "B is for 'Backup'. I don't like it. Even less when _you_ call me B."

"I know that," interjected Raito acerbically, "but I don't appreciate it when you act as if you have any say regarding my life!"

"I am your best friend," said Beyond quietly, gazing at him with wide, wounded eyes.

"You are not," said Raito tartly. "I don't have a best friend, nor do I need one-"

"That doesn't matter," whispered Beyond softly, a creepy grin spreading over his lips. "I'm still your best friend and you're mine."

Raito waved a hand dismissively, and snapped with annoyance, "Regardless, whatever you believe, if I want to have a girlfriend, I will."

"Nope," said Beyond flatly, clutching his pot of jam tightly while sinking two fingers into it. He cocked his head to a side, and widely smirked at him. "You won't, Light-kun, because-"

There was a polite knock on the door, and Raito saw Beyond tensing. Nevertheless, he was grateful for the girl's punctuality, and he swiftly opened the door of his room.

With dignified elegance, and impeccably groomed, Viviane stood before him, with a small smile on her lips. She was shorter than Raito, with a petite yet curvy body, glossy, wavy, long black hair, and beautiful, large green eyes.

Raito shot her a charming, gorgeous smile, and to his enjoyment, he saw a faint blush spreading over her cheeks.

"Always on time, Vivi," he said placidly, "let me get my things, and we'll go to the library."

"Great," said Viviane, with her characteristic faint, melodic French accent. "I've already found some books there that will help us finish our homework soon."

"Perfect," said Raito, warmly smiling at her, before turning around to grab his schoolbag, flinging it unto one shoulder.

"Oh, I didn't see you there, B," said Viviane politely. "How are you?"

Raito turned around to look at them just when Beyond narrowed his eyes at her, saying acidly, "As if you care, bitch. Why do you always have to trail after Andrew? Do you really think that he's interested in you? You assume too much if you think he's going to make you his girlfriend."

Viviane coldly gazed at Beyond, utterly unfazed, since Raito knew that she was accustomed to how Beyond treated her, ever since she had become his 'friend'.

"I assume nothing of the sort," she said coldly, "and I don't see why you care, _Backup_. Andrew is simply my friend."

Beyond hunched his shoulders forward, glaring at her, as he snarled enraged, "He's not your friend-"

"Should we go?" interrupted Viviane, ignoring the older boy while she glanced at Raito.

"Yes, of course," said Raito charmingly, holding out a hand. "Here, let me carry your books. They seem heavy."

"Thank you," said Viviane, warmly smiling at him while she gently placed her books in his hand, faintly blushing as she always did when Raito acted gallantly towards her.

Raito stuck her books inside his schoolbag, side-glancing at Beyond, who seemed to be spitting fire. "You can stay in my room if you want. I'll see you later."

He escorted Viviane from his room, and the last thing he saw before closing the door behind him, was Beyond gnawing at his fingers, with a trail of blood dripping from his lips and a murderous, insane glint in his large, crimson-shaded eyes.

But as usual, Raito ignored the older boy's crazed antics, and he firmly closed the door. He glanced at Viviane, smiling at her as they made their way towards the library, chatting amicably, while Raito pretended to be fascinated by her wit and intelligence.

* * *

_July__ 20, 2000_

"We're the talk of the school, you know," said Viviane, with a small smile gracing her lips, while Raito escorted her to her room after their last class of the day.

"Yes, I've heard," said Raito, chuckling softly. "We're rumored to be a couple."

She side-glanced at him, and asked quietly, "Are we?"

"Is that what you would like?" said Raito, inwardly grimacing, yet handsomely smiling at her.

A faint blush spread over Viviane's cheeks, but she lifted her chin, and looked straight into his eyes. "I would like to try. We always do our homework together, and I enjoy your company. I find you brilliant, and I'm never bored with you, since we can hold intelligent conversations while debating interesting issues."

Raito hummed but remained quiet, while they advanced along the hallway. Suddenly, she stopped on her tracks, gently placing a hand on his arm.

"What's your answer, Andrew?"

"Are you asking me out on a date?" said Raito, gazing down at her while he pulled a warm, affectionate expression over his features.

Viviane let out a melodious chuckle. "I would prefer that you were the one asking me out." She bore her green eyes into his, and inquired, "Have you ever had a girlfriend?"

"No," replied Raito placidly, trying not to outwardly cringe and grimace at the ridiculously phrased turn in the conversation. Truly, 'girlfriend' and 'boyfriend' - such inane and imbecilic terms. "Have you had a boyfriend?"

"No. I've never met anyone whom I would want to consider as such," she said quietly. "Until now. You could ask me on a date, during the next monthly trip to London."

"Yes, I could," said Raito noncommittally, proceeding down the hallway while he pondered about it.

Truthfully, the last thing he wanted was to be forced to act as a boyfriend. He felt no attraction towards her, or anyone else. And whilst it was true that they had interesting conversations, and that she was bright in her own right, she wasn't nearly as brilliant as himself. Hence, he didn't find her challenging or worthy.

On the other hand, perhaps it would serve his purposes to treat her as a girlfriend. He inwardly sneered. He didn't think that he would enjoy any physical intimacy with her, but it was an area in which he was completely inexperienced. And he had to fix that, eventually, since he didn't want to be lacking in any respect. Furthermore, he knew that he could manipulate her, and future girls, if he knew what he was doing; if he learned how to kiss and do… other things…

Raito inwardly grimaced, but his mind ploughed forward. Yes, it could be useful, and also, if he made her his 'girlfriend', she'll feel more attached to him, and thus, would be more willing to do him favors in the future. Not to mention that maybe Beyond would stop acting like a crazed idiot if he finally showed the boy that he could do whatever he wished, such as taking a girlfriend.

Over the last month, Beyond's behavior had drastically changed. The older boy still sought him out to spend evenings together to study cases being solved by L and by the other two detectives, and Raito still found him perched on the swivel chair, gazing at him, when he woke up in the mornings. But Beyond had started displaying an erratic behavior of foul mood and bouts of aggressiveness towards other students. Moreover, the older boy was gnawing his fingers more frequently and savagely than ever.

Not that Raito truly cared about Beyond's wellbeing, but he was starting to get fed up with the older boy's displays of possessiveness over him; always stating that Raito was his friend, his only friend, and that 'Light-kun' couldn't have any girlfriends. It was ridiculous and annoying, and Raito wanted to put a stop to it. And he could do so if he made Viviane his girlfriend, to show Beyond that he did whatever he liked.

Given all those reasons, Raito had just decided that he would indeed make Viviane his girlfriend –for a while at least, before he got bored- when he heard a muffled voice coming out from one room. He halted in his tracks, his curiosity and interest piqued when he made out what the voice was saying. And he discerned that it was Roger's voice, since they had just crossed his office's door.

Viviane had proceeded along the hallway before realizing that Raito had stopped, but he merely gestured for her to keep quiet and stay in place. Then, he pressed his ear against the closed, mahogany door, listening intently.

"Hmm… I see," said Roger's voice, "You want Matt to check it… Y, you say?... A detective?... No?... Ah… sending emails… trying to solve cases? I see… Interested in who he is?... Smart? Ah… Yes… Very well, I'll have Matt try to find the man's location… Yes… Take care, L."

A large smirk spread over Raito's lips, while he suddenly felt a flare of gleeful triumph and enjoyment. So 'Y' had finally caught L's attention… Perfect. Just as he wanted.

He inwardly chuckled with snide derisiveness. Did L believe that Matt would be able to find out from where Y was sending his emails? It was preposterous! Surely, Matt was a computer whiz, and a very skilled hacker, but he vastly surpassed the younger boy. Furthermore, he had taken every complex measure imaginable so that his ever-changing IP address couldn't be tracked, and thus, his real location would never be discovered.

He inwardly laughed with amusement. Yes, let Matt try it. He would have the younger boy looking for months across the worldwide net, just to make the boy believe that Y was in Alaska, or some such place.

"What is it?" asked Viviane quietly, who had returned to his side. "What did you hear?"

"Nothing important," whispered Raito dismissively, still feeling a rush of joy. "I thought Roger was saying something about Beyond, and felt curiosity. But I was mistaken."

"Oh," murmured Viviane, intently observing him while they proceeded along the hallway. "Is B really your friend?"

"Hm, what?" said Raito absent-mindedly, still scheming how to lead Matt into a never-ending hunt for Y.

"Do you care about B?" she said, a bit sharply.

Raito glanced at her, shrugging his shoulders with indifference as a mode of response.

"Well, I don't think you should spend so much time with him," said Viviane quietly, looking concerned. "Everyone here thinks he's insane, and I believe it as well. The way he behaves…" She cleared her throat, and added pointedly, "The way he behaves around you is alarming, Andrew. I think he's obsessed with you. He could hurt you."

"Hurt me?" said Raito with disbelief. He chuckled softly, shaking his head. "Beyond would never hurt me."

"How can you know?" she pressed on, glancing worriedly at him.

"I just do," replied Raito dismissively.

Viviane sighed, seemingly with disappointment and frustration, just when they reached the door of her room. Bedazzlingly smiling at her, Raito handed her the books he had been carrying for her. She took them and placed them inside her schoolbag, gratefully smiling back at him. But unlike other times, she didn't immediately enter her room. Instead, she was gazing at him, looking a bit nervous and uncertain.

Arching an eyebrow, wondering what was wrong with her, Raito stared back at her. He realized what was going on when she took a small step forward, a faint blush coloring her cheeks while she stood on her tiptoes.

For a moment, Raito felt a fleeting flare of repulsion, but he stood in place when he felt her lips gently brushing his. He was surprised that she had taken the initiative, and so soon as well. But he guessed that she had concluded, from their earlier conversation, that he was willing to consider her his girlfriend.

Then, appearing more emboldened since he hadn't flinched backwards, Viviane slowly opened her lips against his. Resigned, remembering that this was what he had decided to be convenient for his plans, Raito cupped her face. He didn't want to embrace her or grab her waist -that was too intimate for his taste- so he simply rested his palms on either side of her cheeks. And, deciding to take control over the situation, he experimentally and slowly inched his tongue inside her mouth.

Raito saw her closing her eyes and sighing with contentment, while she pressed herself closer to him. And he soon felt her tongue gently brushing against his, inside her mouth. He didn't know how to describe the kiss. It was wet and warm, he supposed. But he didn't feel any lust or arousal being ignited in him. Not that he had expected it, but it relieved him, since like this, he could control it. Like this, the kiss was merely one more tool in his armory for manipulation.

Satisfied that the kiss wasn't affecting him in any way, Raito cupped her face with more gentleness while he continued to experimentally brush his tongue against hers. He took his time in learning what she liked, and he explored her mouth, gently and slowly delving his tongue inside, while Viviane softly sighed with pleasure.

Just when he felt that he was getting very good at it, given how Viviane was responding, he felt a hand abruptly grasping his shoulder and violently yanking him away.

Startled, Raito staggered back against a wall, and then he saw who had interrupted them. Beyond stood before them, with a thunderous expression on his face, and Raito had never seen him like this before. The older boy was standing with straight shoulders, not hunched, therefore in his full height. One of his hands was jerkily clenching and unclenching into a fist, and his crimson-shaded eyes sparkled with fury and madness, narrowed at Viviane, and then flicking to pierce Raito's eyes.

"What were you doing?" growled Beyond, his voice low, deep, and animalistic.

Frowning at him, while feeling a flare of anger, Raito straightened to his full height, which still made him shorter than the older boy, and he snapped crisply, "I was talking to Viviane."

"YOU WERE KISSING HER!" bellowed Beyond furiously, tightly clutching his pot of strawberry jam, his knuckles turning white.

"So what?" spat Raito, narrowing his eyes at him.

"I told you never to do something like this!" yelled Beyond madly, taking a step towards him.

"You're not my father!" bit out Raito through gritted teeth. "You cannot tell me what to do. I do whatever I want!"

"This is ridiculous," interceded Viviane, glowering at Beyond. "You have no right to tell him that he cannot kiss me, B!"

Raito glanced at her, and griped sharply, "Don't get involved-"

"Shut it, bitch!" roared Beyond, rounding on her. "I wasn't speaking to you-"

"I don't care," spat Viviane, her voice cold and hard, her green eyes glinting with anger while she raised her chin with valiant defiance. "I will not stand here and allow you to bully us."

"Vivi," said Raito in harsh warning, "don't get involved. I'll deal with him-"

"No!" she snapped angrily, glancing at him. "I want to be your girlfriend, Andrew, and this cannot go on. I'm tired of his attitude-"

Abruptly, she shrieked when Beyond suddenly hurled the glass pot of jam in her direction, which crashed against the wall, a few inches away from her head. Pieces of glass flew everywhere, and before Raito had a chance to move, Beyond had flung himself at Viviane, trapping her in his arms while he sunk his teeth deep into her thinly clothed shoulder.

Viviane screamed in pain and shock, and Raito, alarmed though not really concerned about her, immediately pried Beyond away from her, handling him forcefully.

"Are you mad?!" he hissed furiously. "What do you think you're doing, you idiot?"

With a tight grasp around Beyond's forearm, he pulled him even further away from Viviane. But just then, the older boy swirled around brusquely, making them stagger against a wall.

Raito wheezed as his back painfully smashed against it, while Beyond tightly gripped his shoulders, as he crowed with a creepy chortle, "Mad, am I, Andrew?"

Abruptly, Beyond flung out a bare foot, swiftly hitting Raito's ankles, and Raito gasped in startlement as he toppled down to the floor, Beyond falling on top of him. Immediately, the older boy straddled his waist, tightly grasping Raito's wrists, pinning them against the floor.

"Am I mad?" said Beyond with cheerful enjoyment, widely smirking at him while he leaned his face close to Raito's.

"Yes, you daft idiot!" snarled Raito, trying to wrench his wrists loose. "You bit her, Beyond!"

Beyond cocked his head to a side, and his smirk widened. "Do you care about that?"

"Of course I do!" snapped Raito, furiously glaring at him. "You hurt her."

Beyond smirked at him knowingly, and breathed into his ear with much relish, "Liar."

Raito leveled him with the darkest glare he could muster, but he didn't say anything. He wasn't going to say that he truly didn't care about her, or that he had pried Beyond away from her more concerned about the repercussions for Beyond than about Viviane. He still didn't understand why that had been his motive. He had just acted instinctively.

Then, he finally realized that Viviane had been yelling for help, before rushing away along the corridor, and he bit out angrily, "Get off me!"

"I won't," said Beyond, lopsidedly grinning at him, tightening his grasp on Raito's wrists. "Not until you tell me that you won't kiss anyone again."

"Fuck you!" spat Raito furiously. "What I do isn't any business of yours!"

"It is, it is, it is," said Beyond in a deranged sing-song, crookedly smirking at him. "You're my friend – you're mine, Light-kun. You're mine, you're mine, you're mine-"

Raito stared at him with disbelief. That was it; he had had enough. He used every ounce of strength in him and forcefully wrenched free one of his wrists, immediately swinging a fist back and punching Beyond squarely on the jaw.

The boy's head snapped to a side, while letting out a gasp of pained surprise. Instantly, Beyond turned his head to stare at Raito with hurt, wide eyes, swiftly trapping Raito's free wrist once more, as he murmured quietly, "You hit me."

"Of course I did," spat Raito, flinging his legs, trying to shove Beyond off him.

But the older boy simply overpowered him by tightening his thighs at either side of Raito's waist, using his weight to pin down Raito. Yet, Beyond stayed silent while he continued gazing at Raito with wide eyes.

"Let me go!" snarled Raito angrily, trying to buck underneath the boy. "Or are you just waiting to bite me or punch me? Then do it! If you want to fight, we will, but release me!"

"I don't want to fight," mumbled Beyond in a small voice, looking crestfallen, before he cocked his head to a side as his lips suddenly curled into a faint smirk. "I wouldn't hurt you either, unless you wanted me to." He leaned his face forward, and whispered softly into Raito's ear, "Do you want me to, Light-kun?"

"No," snapped Raito, darkly glaring at him as he repressed an annoying shiver that rushed down his spine. "I want you to release me."

Beyond let out a crow of laughter, and chirped cheerfully, "That, I won't do until you-"

The boy clamped his mouth shut at the sound of rushing feet and yells, and Raito felt him stiffen and tense, though Beyond didn't move an inch, his crimson-shaded gaze still boring into Raito's eyes.

Raito turned his head around, resting his cheek on the cold floor to see what was happening. There was a group of people rushing towards them, with Roger, the school's doctor, the nurse, and Viviane at the front, with a bunch of curious students trailing after them.

He groaned, hating that others would see him like this. He glanced back at Beyond, and said sharply, "Let me go."

But Beyond didn't respond, he merely gazed at him, his posture tense, before he was forcefully ripped away from Raito by the school's doctor.

Relieved, Raito instantly jumped to his feet, looking at no one while he smoothed his trousers and shirt with a hand, inwardly seething with anger and mortification.

Suddenly, all hell seemed to break loose. Beyond started roaring, screaming and kicking like a wild animal, while the doctor, who was a large man, tightly grasped the boy's flinging arms, yelling for the nurse's aid.

Standing stiffly, Raito watched how the nurse pulled up Beyond's sleeve, immediately yet carefully sticking a needle in the boy's arm. In a few seconds, Beyond went limp against the doctor's grasp, his head rolling to a side while his wide eyes became unfocused and glazed over.

Raito felt a pang of – something as he gazed at the boy. But he resolutely clenched his jaw and turned towards Viviane, while the doctor and the nurse carried Beyond away.

"Are you alright?" he said with fake worry, inspecting her.

Viviane looked disheveled and frightened, with her white blouse torn and stained with blood on the shoulder that Beyond had bitten. Though Raito saw a bandage covering the skin that was revealed.

"I'm alright," she said, her voice low and haggard. "It was nothing, really." Her eyes trailed over him, and she rushed out with concern, "Are you okay? Did he hurt you? I'm sorry for leaving you alone with him, but I had to leave to get help. I didn't know what else to do-"

"I understand, don't worry," interrupted Raito, making his voice sound gentle and unfazed. "He didn't do anything to me."

"Are you sure?" said Viviane doubtfully, her green eyes still inspecting him with worry. She gently grabbed his arm, and said softly, "Come, I'll take you to the infirmary. You should be checked-"

"I'm fine!" snapped Raito angrily, wrenching his arm away from her grasp.

Startled, Viviane glanced back at him with a hurt expression on her face, but Raito was in no humor to mollify her feelings, and he briskly spun around to make way towards his room, ignoring everyone around him. Not wanting to even see the students' expressions and reactions to what they had seen.

Regretfully, Roger instantly halted him before he escaped, inspecting him carefully.

"Andrew, what happened? Are you hurt?"

"Nothing happened," replied Raito flatly. "I'm fine."

Roger pierced him with his eyes, and then said quietly, "Do you need to go to the infirmary-"

"I said I'm fine! I don't need to be coddled!" spat Raito, glaring at him, before he swiftly made his way through the group of children. He seethed inside, but he also damned himself for having lost his cool, Beyond having unsettled him once again.

All of it had been...perturbing.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me; I only own this story and make no profit from this.

AN:

Thanks everyone for reviewing! I wanted to let you know that FFnet sent me an email telling me that I couldn't answer reviewers in my A/N, and that I had to edit all the A/Ns of my other two fics or they would remove the fics from the site.

I'm just telling you so that you know that even if I'm not replying reviews here, I'm still reading every single review you send me because I greatly appreaciate it. I love to hear about your opinions, and about what things I could do to improve the fic, what direction you would like it to take, or what kind of scenes you would like to read. So please, even if I don't answer them, keep sending reviews, I'm very grateful for them.

And I'll be replying to individual reviewers by the use of PMs if any of you have quetions or doubts about the story. Thanks and I hope you enjoy the chapter!

* * *

**Chapter 6**

* * *

_July__ 26, 2000_

It was Sunday morning, and Raito was gracefully seated on the floor in front of a chess board, with Near seated at the opposite side. The small boy's face was impassive and revealed nothing while pondering his next move.

During the week following 'the Incident' –as it was called- Raito never saw Beyond again. Every day, when he woke up, the boy wasn't there on the swivel chair, gazing at him. It was rumored that Beyond was being held in the infirmary, heavily dosed with sedatives and strapped to a bed, while being treated by the school's psychologist.

And Raito had firmly told himself that he didn't care. Indeed, if he had seen Beyond during the days that followed the incident, he would have punched him again in retribution. He still seethed with anger every time he remembered it.

Nevertheless, soon all students understood that they shouldn't ask him any questions about what had happened. Viviane never mentioned it again, knowing that it was a dangerous subject, and he spent most of his time with her, doing homework or studying. Though, he never kissed her again or made any overtures of wanting to do so. He still treated her courteously and charmingly, but he had postponed his plan of making her his girlfriend. He just didn't feel like it, nor did he want that complication in his life, for now.

Roger and the teachers also didn't ask him questions. Yet, Roger had made him visit his office the day after the incident, and Raito had been forced to endure a lecture in which Roger had warned him to stay away from Beyond. It had seemed to him that the man had truly been concerned about him. Nevertheless, he didn't appreciate to be told what he had to do, or to be ordered that he shouldn't be Beyond's 'friend' any longer.

He had politely agreed with everything, but as soon as he left the office, he had wondered what he should do. During the week without Beyond, in which he had to endure Viviane's constant presence, he had realized, strangely enough, that he missed the older boy. He missed hacking into police databases with him, studying on-going cases, and analyzing reports on solved cases, given by L or the other two detectives. Raito had reluctantly admitted to himself that he even missed Beyond's deranged quirks.

He knew why. Beyond was the only person who he felt challenged by. In part, due to the older boy's brilliance –which truly wasn't reflected in Beyond's tests scores, and subsequent placement as fourth in the school- but also due to the boy's alleged insanity. Beyond was like a complex, strange puzzle which he couldn't solve. The older boy was the only one who managed to unsettle him. And also, Beyond was the only one with whom he had been himself. Perhaps it was because Beyond knew his real name, about his nightmares, and about his sister's death. Regardless, he had always acted like himself around Beyond. He always snapped at the other boy when he felt like it, or showed his anger, instead of masking everything under the appearance of impassiveness, politeness, and humble charm. And for the first time with someone, he had felt accepted for who he truly was – accepted by Beyond.

Nevertheless, Raito consciously didn't allow himself to think about Beyond or what was happening to him. He merely attended classes, behaved like the model student that he was, kept charming all others, and concentrated in his studies.

When Near made his chess move, Raito pulled out of his musings and silently observed the small boy, as he always did during their games.

Quickly, having already foreseen the tactic that Near was trying to use to trap his queen, Raito made his move, gently settling the black chess piece on a white square.

"You use random strategies," said Near in his deadpanned tone of voice, gazing at the chess board. "Logically, I can deduce that you do it on purpose, so that I'll never be able to profile you."

Raito glanced at him, masking his surprise, since Near never spoke during their chess games. But he wasn't surprised about the small boy's statement, since it was correct. Usually, with any other, he would have used aggressive and offensive strategies to win quickly. But with Near, he didn't want to disclose his way of thinking, since he didn't want to be profiled, as the boy said. Because if Near could profile him regarding his chess strategies, then the boy would also deduce how his mind worked.

Therefore, he always purposely used varying strategies which didn't reflect his thought pattern. Thus, he sometimes allowed Near to beat him, for that very same reason. And all the while, he had discovered that Near only played offensively and brashly during the last chess moves of a game– that said plenty about the boy, and he would remember it in the future.

"You're cunning, Andrew," said Near, with his gaze fixed on his chess pieces.

Raito faintly smiled at him. "So are you."

Near mutely nodded, before making his next chess move.

Abruptly, the library's door was loudly banged open, and Raito glanced up to see Mello stomping his way towards them.

The boy glared at him, and spat, "Why are you wasting your time with the little freak?" Mello crossed his arms over his chest, darkly scowling at Raito. "You said you would come with us. Why the fuck are you here with the freak?"

Raito calmly checked his wristwatch, before he said quietly, "It's not time yet. There're thirty minutes to go before the trip to London."

"So you're coming?" demanded Mello briskly.

"It depends," said Raito, smirking at him. "Do you have it?"

"And you call yourself my frigging friend?" snapped Mello crisply.

"Yes, I do," said Raito, purposely shooting at him a warm smile, "yet I don't do anything for free. Much less something you refuse to tell me in advance. The only thing you've told me is that you need me, in order to enter some store, because I could pass for an eighteen-year-old boy, and thus, you and Matt want me to accompany you. Nevertheless, I won't do it for free. So, do you have it?"

"Yes," bit out Mello, digging a hand inside a pocket of his form-fitting, black jeans.

He tossed the card into the air, and Raito deftly caught it, inspecting the fake driver's license Mello had created for him. It displayed the name of 'Andrew Jones' and a birthdate which made him an eighteen year old.

Raito smiled at Mello; the driver's license was perfect. There was no way anybody could detect that it was fake. Mello was truly gifted.

"What do you want it for?" demanded Mello, narrowing his eyes at him.

"I don't know yet," said Raito impassively, "but it's certainly useful to have around."

Mello widely smirked at him. "Yes, it fucking is, isn't it?" He gestured at the driver's license in Raito's hand, and added smugly, "As a matter of fact, you'll use it in the store Matt and I want to visit. And I'm also counting for you to have it during an adventure I have planned for the next month."

"What adventure?" said Raito arching an eyebrow, suppressing his wariness.

"I won't fucking tell you with the freak listening in," snapped Mello. His lips curved into a mischievous smirk, and he added boisterously, "But it will be frigging awesome!"

"I'm not remotely interested in anything you do, Mello," said Near flatly, his gaze still fixed on the chess board. "So don't assume that I'm 'listening in', when it's you who interrupted us."

"SHUT IT, FREAK!" bellowed Mello angrily, darkly glaring at the small boy. "I wasn't fucking speaking to you, so shut your frigging trap!" He swiftly turned to Raito, and said sharply, "And you'll be part of our fucking adventure, we need you for it."

Raito smirked at him. "What do I get in return?"

"The frigging honor of being part of it!" snapped Mello, glowering at him. Abruptly, he widely smirked, and added, "Besides, you'll have to do it for free. I have planned it for my birthday, so consider it your gift to me."

Raito scoffed. "It won't be your real birthday, Mello. So why should I give you anything?"

"Because all of use choose a fucking different date, each fucking year, to celebrate our frigging birthday," said Mello crisply, stomping his foot on the floor with impatient annoyance. "And I chose that fucking date, so you'll have to give me something!"

"Fine," said Raito dismissively, "I'll do it, this once." He pierced him with his eyes, and said coolly, "But you'll have to reveal to me in advance what this 'adventure' of yours entails. I'm not getting into any trouble blindly."

"Alright," interjected Mello, smirking at him with satisfaction. "I'll tell you when everything is fucking ready."

"Sounds acceptable," said Raito, shooting him a smile.

"Fucking great," said Mello, widely grinning, "Now let's go – frigging London awaits!"

"I still have thirty minutes before the teachers start rounding up students," said Raito, glancing at Near. "I'll finish my chess game first. I owe it to Near. I can't leave him hanging."

Mello loudly groaned, and snapped angrily, "Leave the freak here to rot, for all that I fucking care! Andrew, let's go! You can't honestly prefer to play frigging chess with the little freak, instead of being with Matt and me."

"We can finish later, Andrew," said Near impassively, twirling a lock of hair with a finger, while gazing down at the chess board.

"Don't fucking butt in our conversation!" spat Mello, glowering down at him. "I don't want to hear your frigging whiny voice, freak! So learn to hold your fucking tongue when your superiors are talking!"

"My voice isn't whiny," said Near deadpanned, while calmly playing with his lock of hair, "and you're not my superior, Mello."

"I'm older than you, freak!" bit out Mello angrily, stomping down a foot. "So you have to fucking respect me and frigging obey me-"

"As much as it warms my heart to listen to you two snapping at each other," interrupted Raito sarcastically, glancing up at Mello, "you're only wasting my time. Let me finish my chess game with Near, and then I'll-"

"You're taking the little freak's side?!" spat Mello angrily, glaring at him. He darkly scowled, and crossed his arms over his chest. "Have it your way then. I also wanted to fucking inform you about the latest gossip. But if you prefer to play fucking chess with the freak… if you're not frigging interested, then I'll fucking leave you to it…"

He smirked, and swirled around, making his way towards the door.

"Stop," said Raito sharply.

Mello glanced at him over his shoulder, his smirk widening. "Oh, so you are fucking interested, after all."

"Obviously," said Raito coolly, glancing up at him. "What's the latest gossip?"

"You didn't hear?" said Mello, nastily smirking at him.

Raito pierced him with his eyes, knowing that the young boy was the first to find out about anything that happened in the school. Mello had a knack for it, and also for being the origin and spreader of all gossips.

"What's happened?"

"Oh, so you don't know?" drawled Mello, smugly smirking at him. "Tut-tut, Andrew, you should keep yourself better informed."

"That's what I have you for," countered Raito placidly. "Now, tell me."

Mello glowered at him, but he replied crisply, "It's the fucking weirdo. He was released from the frigging infirmary a few hours ago."

"Beyond?" demanded Raito immediately, gazing up at him.

"Yes, the fucking creep," said Mello tartly. "But he's already making a fucking nuisance of himself. I heard that he locked himself up in his frigging bathroom, and still hasn't come out. Even Roger tried, but B didn't open the door, so they have simply left him there until B decides to come out." He crossed his arms over his chest, and snapped with annoyance, "I don't fucking understand why Roger won't fucking commit him in some institution for frigging loonys!"

Instantly, without pausing to think it further, Raito jumped to his feet, swiftly making his way towards the door.

"WAIT!" bellowed Mello, running after him, and tightly grasping his arm, turning him around. He glared up at Raito, and snapped angrily, "I didn't fucking tell you so that you went to him! Are you frigging stupid?! Even I know that Roger told you not to be around the fucking weirdo!"

Raito wrenched himself free from the boy's grasp, yet he made himself shoot a small smile at Mello. "It's none of your business, Mello. But don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

"I'm not worried," snapped Mello, glowering at him, "I just think you're a fucking idiot if you're planning on still sticking around the frigging creep after what happened."

"As I said, it's none of your business," said Raito sharply, before he turned around and swiftly left the room.

"YOU FUCKING MORON!" yelled Mello after him. "What about the frigging trip to London?!"

"I'll be there – I have time!" shouted Raito over his shoulder, not stopping while he quickly made his way towards Beyond's room.

* * *

Heavily panting, Raito opened the front door of Beyond's rooms. The bedroom was empty, as expected, so he swiftly reached the door of the bathroom, loudly knocking on it.

"It's me, open up!" he snapped angrily. "We have much to discuss."

When no one responded, he started banging on the door. "Open up, you idiot! Don't think for a second that you're off the hook after what you did!"

"Andrew?" came out a muffled voice.

Raito stopped pounding his fists against the door, and replied crisply, "Yes, it's me. Now open the door, Beyond."

"Are you alone?"

"Yes," snapped Raito impatiently.

He heard something being pulled away from the door, from the other side, and he immediately forced himself to calm down, smoothing his shirt with a hand, while regaining his cool composure.

Raito straightened his shoulders, pulling a cold, nonchalant expression on his face, and he opened the door and went inside.

Immediately, he gasped and halted in his tracks when he caught sight of the scene before him.

Beyond was slouched inside the dry bathtub, with his head lolling against a tiled wall, gazing up at him with his wide eyes, while a trail of blood dripped from his lips. Raito's eyes widened in aghast horror when he also saw that several of the tiles were smudged with blood, while both of Beyond's arms were languidly resting on the edges of the bathtub, with the sleeves rolled up and the forearms dripping in blood oozing from numerous cuts. And then he saw it: Beyond was holding a sharp, bloodied dagger in one of his pale hands.

"What the fuck have you done?!" snapped Raito angrily, advancing towards the boy and immediately kneeling besides the bathtub.

"Light-kun," said Beyond, letting out a crowing chortle while he gazed at Raito, "you came."

Raito glared at him, before he kicked closed the door of the bathroom, and glanced back at him, holding out a hand and saying slowly, "Give me the dagger."

"Why would I do that?" said Beyond, lopsidedly grinning at him as he clutched the dagger tighter in his hand, moving it away from Raito's reach. He cocked his head to a side, and whispered softly, "Is Light-kun angry at me?"

"Yes," said Raito tartly, narrowing his eyes at him. "Now give me the fucking dagger, Beyond. You're acting like an idiot. Why have you done this to yourself?!"

"It feels good," said Beyond, merrily chortling. Then, he gazed unblinkingly at him, and his lips curled into a faint smirk. "And perhaps I wanted to see your reaction. What do you think about this?"

"I think that you're more stupid than I thought," said Raito crisply, before he leaned to a side and stretched his arms to open the small closet under the sink.

Seething with anger, but also highly unsettled, he quickly snatched the first-aid kit and returned to kneel besides the bathtub.

"Oh," murmured Beyond softly, widely gazing at him while a languid grin spread over his lips. "Is Light-kun going to heal me?"

Raito halted in his action of opening the kit, and glared at him. "No. But you can do that yourself after you give me the dagger."

"I'm not giving it to you, Light-kun," said Beyond in a sing-song, letting out a crow of joyful laughter. "And if you try to take it from me, I'll stab it into my neck."

"You're an idiot!" spat Raito, feeling both furious and alarmed. "What are you trying to do – kill yourself?"

Beyond blinked at him, before he slowly held up one of his wounded forearms, displaying it for Raito. "I wasn't. I made the cuts horizontally, not along the veins."

"Yes, I can see that," bit out Raito, scrunching his nose in disgust as he observed the countless cuts slashing the boy's bloodied forearm. "But you're losing a lot of blood, you moron! You need to bandage the wounds. So stop being an idiot, give me the dagger, and then heal yourself."

Beyond heavily dropped his arm on the edge of the bathtub, letting it hang limply, and he let out a crow of bubbling laughter, slowly shaking his head. "I won't do it unless you heal me, Light-kun." He gazed at him with his large, crimson-shaded eyes, and added in a murmur, "And until you tell me that you won't kiss anyone again, and that I'm your only friend, ever."

"We'll discuss that," said Raito crisply, glowering at him, "after you're bandaged."

"We'll discuss it now!" shouted Beyond, suddenly bringing down the dagger to repeatedly slash his forearm, blood starting to pour everywhere. "I want you to promise that you won't kiss anyone-"

"STOP IT!" yelled Raito, lunging forwards to capture the dagger while Beyond kept using it to open more cuts in his forearm.

But Beyond had instantly withdrawn it far away from Raito's reach, and Raito wheezed as his body impacted and bent against the edges of the bathtub, his arms flailing before he grasped the edges with his hands, stopping himself from toppling inside.

"Don't try that again!" spat Beyond, instantly pressing the dagger against his own neck.

Alarmed, and breathing heavily, Raito abruptly rocked backwards, plopping down on his haunches, besides the bathtub.

"Give it to me," he said shakily, holding up a hand, though not attempting to capture the dagger again, while he gazed at the boy with wide, frantic eyes.

Fleeting, he wondered why on earth he was staying there, attempting to help the other boy. He could very well leave Beyond to his own devises. Why should he care if the other boy kept cutting himself, or if the boy stabbed his own neck? He inwardly shook his head, firmly telling himself that he didn't care about Beyond and that he wasn't staying there because of him. It was simple, he rationalized; he just didn't want to lose Beyond because the boy was simply something which entertained and challenged him. Like a favorite yet broken toy that he didn't want to lose. Thus, he would attempt to fix him – for now. Yes, that was the reason, and not because he cared.

"Give it to me," he repeated slowly, staring at Beyond with a slightly beseeching expression on his face.

Beyond gazed back at him, faintly smiling, but still holding the dagger against his neck. "Promise first."

"What do I have to promise?" said Raito crisply, narrowing his eyes at him.

"That you won't kiss anyone again," murmured Beyond, staring at him with wide eyes, "and that I'm your only friend."

"I won't be manipulated by you!" snapped Raito, before he gestured at the dagger. "Or by this, Beyond! You have no right to tell me whom to kiss or-"

"PROMISE IT!" bellowed Beyond. He let out a crow of laughter while he sunk the dagger along the smooth flesh of his neck, as he said in a sing-song, "Promise it, promise it, promise it, or I'll keep cutting, Light-kun. Promise it, promise it-"

"Stop! Alright. Alright!" yelled Raito angrily, while he warily gazed at the small cut crossing the boy's neck, feeling a pang of horror as trails of blood oozed from it.

Beyond halted the dagger in mid cut, and stared expectantly at Raito, with unblinking wide eyes, while he whispered softly, "Say it."

Raito glared at him, and gritted out, "I promise to never kiss anyone again."

"What else?" murmured Beyond, his gaze never leaving Raito.

Raito's jaw clenched, and he snapped, "And you're my only friend."

"Ever?"

Raito's eyebrow twitched, and he spat, "Yes."

"I knew it, Light-kun," whispered Beyond softly, faintly grinning at him.

"Cheers for you," bit out Raito tartly, glowering at him while he held up a hand. "Now give it to me."

"Of course I will," said Beyond placidly, his lips curling into a smirk as he handed over the bloodied dagger.

Raito clasped it with disgust, before he swiftly tossed it to the farthest corner of the bathroom. He eyed the other boy's deep cuts on the forearms, which still oozed blood, and the superficial cut on the neck which trailed with blood. Quickly, he opened the first-aid kit, resigned in his task, for he knew that Beyond wouldn't lift a finger to help himself.

Seething in anger, at having been forced to say those things, he briskly brought out cotton balls, a small bottle of alcohol, and a roll of bandages from the kit. He rolled further up the sleeves of Beyond's T-shirt, and then he drenched a large ball of cotton in alcohol. Darkly glaring at Beyond, he brusquely grabbed one of the boy's wrists and started to dab the cotton ball on the cuts.

Beyond didn't even flinch when his cuts were disinfected and cleaned with alcohol. He merely gazed at Raito with wide eyes, as if entranced by his actions, with a placid expression on his face while he softly sighed with contentment.

Raito darkly glowered at him while he spent the next minutes carefully cleaning the boy's wounds with alcohol and cotton balls, before he tightly bandaged the boy's forearms. At last, he proceeded to gently dab a cotton ball, drenched in alcohol, on the small cut in Beyond's neck. Then he swiped it around the cut, to clean the trails of blood. Since the wound wasn't deep, he finally pressed a new cotton ball against it, securing it with a large band-aid, so that it would stop the flow of trickling blood.

He sighed tiredly as he packed the unused supplies back inside the first-aid kit, and he was about to stand up to use the sink to clean himself, when he felt Beyond gripping his shoulders. Abruptly, before he knew what was happening, Raito was forcefully pulled forward by Beyond. He yelled in startlement as his body bent over the bloodied edge of the bathtub, before he toppled over it, being pulled inside.

Raito wheezed as he flopped on top of Beyond, the other boy still tightly grasping his shoulders. Startled, he quickly tried to pull himself up, but his hands kept sliding on the blood splattered in the bathtub.

Crows of laughter bubbled from Beyond's lips, before he stared at Raito with wide eyes, and suddenly grasped his face. Alarmed, Raito struggled against him, fleetingly wondering how the boy could have any strength left in him after losing so much blood. But any further thoughts faded away from his mind when Beyond tightly wrapped an arm around him, smashing Raito against him, and quickly pressing his lips to his.

Raito gasped and his eyes impossibly widened while Beyond trapped him and pressed their mouths together, his gaze locked with Beyond's large, crimson-shaded eyes. Then he saw the boy closing his eyes with an expression of deep enjoyment and contentment, while Raito felt a warm tongue entering his mouth through his parted lips. Immediately, he felt Beyond's tongue gently brushing his, while a coppery tang warmly suffused the kiss, before the boy started to hungrily explore his mouth.

In an instant, finally gathering back his senses, Raito brusquely wrenched his face away from Beyond's grasp, feeling horrified, appalled but also highly confused and unsettled. Nevertheless, as much as he tried to pull himself off the other boy, his hands kept sliding on the bloodied surface of the bathtub, and Beyond still trapped him with an arm around his waist.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" he snarled furiously, pressing his palms on Beyond's chest, trying to lift himself off the other boy.

Beyond cocked his head to a side, gazing at him with wide eyes, and said merrily, "I was kissing you, Light-kun. I thought it would be obvious."

"You, you… you," spluttered Raito irately, glaring at him with disgust. "We're boys! Don't ever do that again or I'll smash your head against a wall! And you made me promise that I wouldn't kiss anyone-"

"Anyone but me, of course," said Beyond, lopsidedly grinning at him. "I liked kissing you and I think that you liked it as well. So I'm going to kiss you as often as I like. And why should it matter that we're boys?" He cocked his head to aside, and murmured, "Don't tell me that Light-kun is prejudiced against gays."

"I'm not prejudiced!" spat Raito, struggling against the boy's arms which were tightly wrapped around him. "I couldn't care less who other people kiss or bed! But I'm not gay, so don't ever fucking do that again!"

"How would you know if you have never kissed a boy before?"

"That doesn't matter!" roared Raito furiously. "I don't like to kiss anyone-"

"You kissed V," spat Beyond, piercing him with his crimson-shaded eyes.

"Because I wanted to," snapped Raito, darkly glaring at him. "I want to know how to kiss girls-"

"But you won't," said Beyond, smirking at him, before he let out a crowing chortle. "You won't, Light-kun, because you promised me. And because I could tell that you didn't enjoy kissing her." He cocked his head to a side, and his smirk widened. "But you enjoyed my kiss."

"I DID NOT!" spat Raito irately, again struggling against the boy's hold. "And release me right now!"

"I don't think I will," said Beyond in a delighted sing-song. "I think we should take a shower, a shower, a shower..."

And swiftly, still holding Raito tightly against him with an arm, he shot upwards a hand to spin around one of the knobs of the shower. Instantly, warm water poured down on them.

"Agh!" splat out Raito, his whole head and clothed body being drenched in flowing water. At last, he used every ounce of strength he could muster, and he jumped away from Beyond, toppling to the other side of the bathtub, his chest heaving with anger and deep breaths.

In a blink of an eye, Beyond jumped on top of him, making them sink down further in the speedily filling bathtub, and he whispered softly into Raito's ear, "Admit it, Light-kun, you liked it. You liked my kiss."

"I didn't," hissed Raito, glaring up at him. "It was disgusting!"

Beyond cocked his head to a side, a wide smirk spread over his lips, and he breathed out, "Liar."

When the boy leaned down to press his lips against Raito's, Raito instantly flung out a fist and smashed it against the boy's jaw.

Beyond's face snapped to a side, before he quickly grasped Raito's wrists, lopsidedly grinning at him. "Light-kun enjoys punching me."

"I do, because you deserve it, you creep!"

Beyond stared at him with unblinking wide eyes, and murmured with a hurt expression on his face, "Do you think I'm a creep?"

"I think that you don't care about my opinion," spat Raito angrily, darkly glaring at him. "You believe you have the right to do whatever you want with me – but you don't!"

"Oh, but I do," said Beyond merrily, letting out a crow of laughter. He pierced him with wide eyes, and whispered softly, "You're my only friend. And you're here because of me, Light-kun."

Raito narrowed his eyes at him, wondering what that last part meant. "I'm here because I was angry at you after what you did last week!"

"Yes, I knew that," said Beyond, cocking his head to aside, while toothily grinning at him. "But you also came looking for me, and you healed me, because you cared, Light-kun. There's no point denying it. You missed me. And you like me." His grin spread, and he said in a delighted sing-song, "You like me, you like me, you like me-"

"I don't like you," snarled Raito, instantly wrenching his wrists free from the boy's grasp and forcefully shoving the boy away from him.

Startled, Beyond flopped on the water at the other end, and Raito quickly stood up and stepped out of the bathtub.

Seething with anger, with his wet locks of hair plastered on his forehead and his clothes drenched, he yanked a hand-towel from a loop on the wall, and he wrenched open the door.

"Where are you going?"

Raito turned his head around to glare at Beyond, and snapped, "To London."

"Oh, the monthly trip!" said Beyond delighted, chortling with laughter while he flopped his arms in the water. "If you're going, I'm going too."

"Roger won't let you," bit out Raito acidly.

"He will," said Beyond, cocking his head to a side, smirking at him. "He'll be relieved that I came out from the bathroom and that I'm going out."

"Fine, do whatever you like, I couldn't care less," snapped Raito angrily. "But stay away from me during the trip! And if you try again to kiss me I'll punch you until you're black and blue!"

Swiftly, he left the bathroom before the boy could say anything else, and he slammed the door shut behind him. Beyond didn't come out and he heard the splatter of water, so he assumed that the boy would be busy cleaning himself or showering. Thus, he quickly undressed in Beyond's bedroom, grasping a T-shirt and baggy jean from the boy's closet. He couldn't go around the hallways with drenched clothes, but Beyond's clothes hung loosely from his frame, a couple of sizes too big. Though, he didn't have any other option.

He used the hand-towel to dry his hair, wipe his face, and clean the blood off his fingers. Then he tossed it to the floor, before he stepped out from Beyond's room, with his drenched clothes rolled in a ball under his arm.

Seething in bristling anger, Raito made his way towards his room, knowing that he still had ten minutes left to take a quick shower and dress in time to meet the other students at the entrance of the school, for their trip to London.

Fuming, he ignored any wandering student as he approached the door of his room, while deeply immersed in his angered thoughts. Whatever Beyond said, he would retaliate with violence if the boy attempted to kiss him again. He could still feel the coppery taste of Beyond's blood in his mouth, and the warm feeling of the boy's tongue brushing and undulating against his. It had been wet and warm, like his kiss with Viviane, but also very different. It had been forceful at first, then gentle, and at last ravenous and hungry as Beyond explored his mouth. It had been skilled, warm and pleasurable…

Raito halted in his tracks, his eyes marginally widening with horror, before he shook his head, opened the front door of his rooms, and inwardly sneered. It hadn't been pleasurable; it had been perturbing and disgusting! And he hadn't liked it at all! Even if he did, he wasn't going to allow it to happen again. Kisses were a tool to manipulate others, not to enjoy. Furthermore, he had no desire to learn how to kiss a boy.

He wasn't homophobic -not because he was nice and tolerant about gay people or advocated their right to be with whom they wanted- but simply because he wasn't remotely interested in what others did with their sex life. Thus, as far as he was concerned, gays could happily be gays if that was their thing. But he wasn't gay; he wasn't anything. He didn't like girls or boys in that way, and he wanted that to stay the same. He didn't want to be attracted to anyone. And when he decided to learn how to have sex, it would be solely because it was beneficial to learn it, to be highly skilled in it and use for his purposes to manipulate girls.

Furthermore, he was certain that Beyond had only kissed him to mess with him, and perhaps to stake some sort of claim over him. It was angering and humiliating, and Raito wasn't going to allow it. He also suspected that Beyond was obsessed with him for the simple reason that L was interested in him as well. Nevertheless, however annoying and taxing, he knew that he would need to keep Beyond close to him, since the boy knew too much about him, like his real name.

That was fine because he could pretend to be the boy's 'friend' and he could easily ingratiate himself with him. Moreover, he now held something over the boy's head: he could easily tell Roger what Beyond had been doing inside the bathroom. And there was no doubt in his mind that Roger would commit the boy somewhere if he knew that Beyond had been slicing his forearms and threatening to cut his own neck. When the day came, when he got fed up and didn't have a reason to put up with Beyond, then he would slyly make Roger take the boy away from the school.

Satisfied with his schemes, and having firmly reassured himself that he hadn't liked the kiss, Raito swiftly undressed and ducked under his shower.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me. I only own this story and make no profit from this.

AN:

Thanks to all reviewers! I greatly appreciate it. Now, there are a couple of things that several people have asked me about, so I'll address them here.

I have only seen the anime, never read the manga or the Another Note novel. In the future, for the sake of this fic, I might read parts of the manga. Nevertheless, all the information I have used so far comes from what I remember of the anime and from what I read in Wikipedia's page on Death Note.

It was there that I discovered Beyond Birthday, and the few facts known about him. BB never appeared in the anime, and Wikipedia says that most of the information on him comes from the Another Note novel. From Wikipedia's page on BB, I learned a few scarce things about him, but the way I characterize him is my own, I certainly have no clue if I'm following his canon characterization of Another Note. But BB's possible addiction to strawberry jam was picked up from Wikipedia, as well as BB's alleged custom of gnawing his fingers.

Nevertheless, what I can say about him for certain is that in my fic L and Beyond are two separate people: L being some years older than BB, and of course, several years older than Raito, like in canon. Also, it is unknown if L and BB are related, since canon never covered this aspect. But what I know is that BB reinvented himself to look as similar as possible to L, so that's something to keep in mind.

Oh, and as one reviewer pointed out, I did use the pic of BB in Wikipedia as an inspiration to write the bathtub scene –grins-. You should check the pic, I loved it.

I hope you enjoy this chappie and review to tell me what you think of it! Hugs to everyone!

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**Chapter 7**

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_July__ 26, 2000_

It had been a long, eventful day, mused Raito, as he walked with the grace of supreme natural elegance and with the precision and authoritativeness of cool self-confidence, while he barely paid any attention to the window displays of the stores.

They had been in London for about five hours, escorted by two teachers: Mr. Harris and Ms. Yang.

Mr. Harris was their Math teacher; a bald, short, plump old man who had retired a few years back from his tenure position as a Math professor and academic researcher at Oxford. The old man was a genius in his own right, having published many papers and won several awards in his field. Therefore, after retiring, the only thing which seemed to have challenged the man was to teach young prodigies at Wammy's House, and getting well paid for it, as well.

Raito was rather fond of him, since he had the old man wrapped around his little finger. He had always excelled in Math, as in every other subject, and Mr. Harris adored him because of it, and due to his respectful politeness towards all teachers. The man was actually only interested in him and in the two Indian twins of Near's age. And even though Mr. Harris often tried to persuade him to follow a career in Mathematics, Raito put up with it and politely refused.

Becoming an academic wasn't something which remotely interested him. His goals in life were much higher than becoming some obscure professor only known and respected in his field, with little impact in the world at large. Nevertheless, the old man could be annoyingly persistent, and Raito sometimes fleetingly wondered if he should pull a Mello.

He inwardly chuckled with amusement. He knew from Mello that Mr. Harris had been interested in the boy as well, at first. It was understandable, given Mello's brilliancy in anything related to mechanical engineering. But unlike Raito, Mello had quickly lost his patience with the poor old man. Mello had given the 'fucking annoying fat bastard' the finger, and Mr. Harris, with his sensibilities indignantly shocked, had never spoken to the boy outside of class again.

Their other escort was Ms. Yang. She was actually his Mandarin teacher; a lithe, pretty, Chinese woman, gentle and warm-hearted. She had a soft spot for the younger students of Wammy's House, but however well-intentioned, she was also a bit deluded. Near was actually her favorite, and she flustered around the boy like a mother hen.

Raito was certain that the poor woman actually considered Near to be a cute, platinum-haired, small boy in want of love and affection. And to his endless amusement, Near was just as impassively and coldly indifferent to her as to anyone else, and he never acknowledged her or her kind-hearted attempts. But that only seemed to reassure Ms. Yang that Near was in need of extra attention and coddling.

Observing them during lunch had been entertaining. After spending about two hours in toy shops, videogame stores, candy stores, sport shops, clothing stores, and bookstores, which were all concentrated in a wide, long street, they had all gathered back to have lunch in a place called the Food Court. There, several small restaurants, catering to all tastes, offered their specialties, so that clients took their dishes in trays, to take a seat on long tables in the middle of the Court.

Mello, as expected, had only fed on chocolate cake and pastries. Matt on pizza and potato fries. Viviane on a healthy salad. Beyond had asked for two loafs of bread and had drenched them with strawberry jam, confectioning for himself what could be called a sandwich of jam, jam and more jam. Raito had chosen a dish of fish with a small salad on the side.

And, as usual, Near had asked for a vegetarian dish; tofu with boiled vegetables. Moreover, Ms. Yang had spent all her time flustering around him, making sure that he was well-fed and asking him if he wanted anything else. Near had merely nodded or shaken his head, never looking at her, and treating her with his characteristic detached impassiveness.

Raito had to hand it to Ms. Yang; she didn't give up. Thankfully, he wouldn't be seeing her next year. As any Wammy's House student, he could choose one or two language courses every year. That year, his first, he was taking French and Mandarin. And Mandarin class with Ms. Yang had been easy for him, perhaps because, despite differences, Japanese was his native tongue. French was a little trickier for him, but he was excelling in it as well.

Therefore, he would finish both courses that year, unlike other students, like Viviane, who would continue Mandarin for two more years. And he had already decided that, from the offered courses for next year, he would select Spanish and Russian. Most students chose a different language to learn over one or two years, but Raito would be choosing two different languages per year, since he was very quick in learning new idioms, and since he knew that knowing several languages would be useful for his future.

Now, he was ambling along the street filled with stores, with Beyond by his side. The older boy had been right. When Roger had met the students at the entrance of the school, before two cars took them to London, the man had actually seemed relieved that Beyond was going on the trip as well. Though, Roger had also shot Raito a glance that he could only interpret as troubled, and a warning.

Regardless, so far, Beyond had behaved himself. Maybe it was because the older boy, after the bathtub-and-kiss incident, felt sure of his claim over Raito. Or perhaps it was because Beyond knew that if he attacked a student again, that Roger could send him away. Either way, Raito had seen that Beyond, though glaring once at Viviane, hadn't said a word to her, behaving as if she didn't exist.

On the other hand, Viviane had looked very upset when she had seen Beyond going on the trip with them. Raito had to admit that she was brave, and with a strong personality, since she hadn't acted scared or threatened around Beyond, despite having been bitten by him. With all her poised dignity, she had glared back at Beyond, with supreme, sharp coldness.

Nevertheless, when Beyond had taken a trip to the bathroom, Raito had taken the opportunity of reassuring her, since he still wanted to have power over her. He knew what Beyond had forced him to promise, but promises for him meant nothing, only something to be broken. Beyond knew him more than most, but still not well enough. The only thing Raito abided and fulfilled was when he gave his word on something; it was a matter of honor, inculcated by his father. When he gave his word on something, he would always fulfill it. That was why had had never given his word to anyone in his life.

Thus, he was still planning on keeping Viviane attached to him, and possibly make her his girlfriend, when the time was proper. He wouldn't be relinquishing her until he saw fit. Therefore, when Beyond was in the bathroom of the Food Court, he had explained his situation to her, expressing his regret that they couldn't go out on a date during the trip. It had been very easy to make her believe that he was indeed interested in her, but that at present he couldn't make her his official girlfriend, since he feared for her safety due to Beyond's reaction.

It had been too easy, not challenging at all. A gentle caress of her cheek, soft spoken words about his affection for her, the reassurance that they would still study together and that they could make those moments count as dates, and a warm charming smile. That was all he had needed to do, and Viviane had finally agreed, gazing at him with loving affection and a faint blush across her smooth cheeks. All done before Beyond was back.

And after the group had lunch, Viviane had left with her only other friend; Yori, who was two years older than them and one year younger than Beyond. Yori, or Y as she was called in Wammy's House, was a tall, thin, plain, and timid bookworm kind of girl, with glasses through which her black eyes shone with intelligence. Ratio had never been too interested in her, but he knew that the sixteen-year-old girl was interested in medicine, and that she had been very good in Forensic Studies –second only to him- and that she aspired to become a coroner and forensic doctor, to work both in a hospital as a coroner and in a crime lab of some police headquarter as a forensic doctor.

So, at present, after Mr. Harris and Ms. Yang had decided to escort the younger students and leave the older to shop alone, as long as they didn't go too far away, Raito was disinterestedly walking along the busy commercial street, with Beyond slouching by his side.

The older boy had been strangely quiet and subdued, and Raito had often seen him turning his head around to gaze at the crowd of shoppers. And it happened again, now that Raito was patiently standing by Beyond's side, while the boy gazed at a store's window display.

Beyond turned his head around, his wide eyes unblinkingly gazing at the crowd, while a strange smug smirk curled his lips. That had been the third time that the boy had smirked to someone in the crowd, and Raito, again, suspiciously followed his gaze. But he saw no one familiar or attention-grasping in the large crowd of passerby's.

Once more, Beyond threw an arm around Raito's shoulder, and once again, Raito shrugged it off, narrowing his eyes at him.

"Can you tell me why you've been gazing and smirking at the crowd?" he said sharply, piercing him with his eyes.

Beyond cocked his head to a side, staring unblinkingly at him. "I told you already, Andrew. I smirk at the crowd because I like to show you off to strangers, for others to see that-"

"Rubbish," interrupted Raito crisply, narrowing his eyes at him. "You know perfectly well there's nothing going on between us, and that you have no reason to be smug about walking around with me. Besides, I'm not a fool! You wouldn't simply smirk at strangers. Is there someone you know here? Someone you're expecting to join us?"

"The 'nothing going on between us' is debatable," whispered Beyond softly, intently staring at him. Then he let out a crow of laughter, shaking his head. "And who would I know here, in the middle of a commercial, London street? I was smirking to no one in particular, Andrew." He lopsidedly grinned at him, and added, "It's one more of my bizarre quirks. And I do feel smug to be walking along-side a handsome boy like you. Many girls and even a few young men in the crowd have been checking you out. That's why I smirk at them."

"You like to attribute many things to your craziness, Beyond," said Raito tartly, letting slide the boy's insistence that they were something more than 'friends', "but in this, I don't believe you."

"You don't?" said Beyond, gazing at him with wide eyes, with a perplexed expression on his face. "Then tell me, who have I been smirking at?"

Raito suppressed his irritated annoyance, and he scanned the crowd of passerby's again. And once more, he saw no one familiar or who caught his attention. Irked, but also resigned, he decided to let it go. If Beyond was actually smirking to someone in particular, it wasn't that important either.

"Fine," he said coolly, "then let's get going. We have to meet the group at the cinema in fifteen minutes."

"Oh, but I want to take you first to a very interesting shop," interjected Beyond, with an excited glint in his eyes. "I'm sure you'll like it."

He immediately grasped Ratio's hand, and pulled him forward with him, but Raito quickly wrenched free, and hissed under his breath, not wanting to make a public scene, "Stop behaving like we're a couple. I told you not to grab my hand. We already discussed what happened in your bathroom, and I-"

"No, Andrew," interrupted Beyond cheerfully, proceeding down the street while Raito gracefully kept up with the boy's long, slouched strides, "_we_ didn't discuss the kiss. _You_ told me that it wouldn't happen again, and _I_ stayed quiet, because there's no point in arguing about it. You're insufferably stubborn, and I won't waste my time trying to persuade you with words." He side-glanced at him, and added with a crooked, creepy smirk, "I know you liked it, thus, it will happen again, until you acknowledge it. But don't get your knickers in a twist, I won't push for it - for now."

"Well, thanks for the consideration," snipped Raito sarcastically, shooting him a glare.

"You're welcome," said Beyond joyfully, letting out a crowing chortle, before he stopped in his track in front of a store. "Here we are!"

Raito glanced up, reading the sign above the door. He glanced back at the other boy, and said with snide disbelief, "Spy's Zone? Are you for real? This is the store you want to show me?"

"It is," said Beyond happily, lopsidedly grinning while he opened the door for him. "Come, let's get inside, you'll see it's worth it."

"Alright," muttered Raito, inwardly rolling his eyes.

They spent the next few minutes inspecting the curious gadgets in the store, and Raito had to admit that while some were pathetically inane or ridiculous, there were some others that were interesting and crafty.

He was gazing at one of them that had piqued his curiosity, since he vaguely remembered seeing something similar back in Japan, in a store in Kanto. Intrigued, he inspected the nice, elegant, yet seemingly simple, watch. After clicking several of its buttons, he pressed a tiny, inconspicuous one which made a hidden compartment silently shoot open to a side. It was a thin, circular tray that slid out from the back of the watch, and it had two small clips inside, as if meant to hold a small picture. Or, Raito surmised, a piece of paper, and the like.

"Do you like that watch?" said Beyond, who had suddenly come back from his explorations to stand in front of him, cocking his head to a side.

"Yes," replied Raito, still inspecting the watch, turning it around and to all sides to peek at all its features. "It's very well done. It looks like a regular, simple, nice watch, and you can't even tell that it has this hidden tray."

Beyond loudly hummed while he intently gazed at the watch, with his head still cocked to a side, though his eyes seemed somewhat unfocused. "I think it will be useful for you." Then he lopsidedly grinned as he leaned forward and whispered softly into Raito's ear, "Let me buy it for you."

Raito's eyes snapped to his, and he said quietly, "That's not necessary-"

"No, really," said Beyond, his grin spreading while he gazed at him with wide eyes. "I insist."

"It's expensive," interjected Raito curtly, "and I don't want to-"

"You don't want to feel obliged towards me," interrupted Beyond, knowingly smirking at him. He let out a crowing laughter, and added with enjoyment, "You're a tough nut to crack, Andrew. But don't worry, I can give you a valid reason for you to accept my gift." He cocked his head to a side, and asked, "Tell me, when's your birthday?"

"You know I won't reveal that," said Raito coolly.

"Of course you wouldn't," interjected Beyond, shooting him a crooked smile. "But my point is that you haven't selected a day in which to celebrate your birthday, right?"

"No, I haven't," said Raito impassively, "and I won't either. I'm not going to celebrate my birthday during the years I'll spend in Wammy's House. What's the point of celebrating it if I can't do it on the real date?"

"Exactly my point," countered Beyond, widely smirking at him. "Since you're not going to choose a date, then I'll simply give you one gift each year, whenever I fancy. And for this year, I choose today, and to give you this watch as a present."

Raito glanced at the price tag hanging from the watch, and he gazed back at the other boy. "I can't accept it, it's too expensive, and-"

"It's just a gift," said Beyond briskly, piercing him with his crimson-shaded eyes, "I won't ask for anything in return, for god's sake. Stop being so suspicious and cautious! You would buy it yourself if you had brought the money for it. I have enough to pay for it, so just accept it!" He suddenly grasped Raito's chin, and leaned his face inches away from his, as he whispered softly, "Accept it, Light-kun. I would like you to have something which will remind you of me."

Raito gazed back at him with a small frown, particularly due to the last part. It sounded to him as if Beyond was expecting to suddenly disappear and pop away from existence.

Beyond released Raito's chin, and gazed back at him with wide, expectant eyes, and Raito finally said quietly, "Alright."

A huge, lopsided grin broke on Beyond's face, and he let out a crowing chortle, tinted with frenzied triumph. Then he cocked his head to a side, gazed at him intently, and whispered, "All I would like in exchange is to hear a 'thank you'."

Raito pierced him with his eyes, and muttered, "Thank you. But I will also buy you something whenever you choose to celebrate your birthday. I wouldn't accept your gift, if not."

"Sounds like a good deal," said Beyond cheerfully, throwing an arm over Raito's shoulder, leading him to the counter, while he bubbled with delighted laughter.

After Beyond paid the shopkeeper for the watch, he eagerly took it out from the long, thin, black box that the woman had placed it in. The older boy uncaringly tossed the black box over his shoulder, and Raito saw the shopkeeper glaring at Beyond, before she went to pick up the box from the floor. But Beyond seemed unaware of the woman's glares, or, most likely, the boy couldn't care less.

Beyond quickly grasped Raito's left wrist and removed Raito's old watch from it, handing it to him. After Raito pocketed it, he allowed Beyond to secure the new watch around his wrist. But the older boy didn't stop there, and gazing at him with wide unblinking eyes, while a small satisfied smirk curved his lips, Raito felt him caressing his wrist while still holding it.

"Stop that," hissed Raito under his breath, feeling goosebumps rising over his skin, and he swiftly pulled away from the boy's gentle grasp.

Beyond lopsidedly grinned at him, and leaned forward to breathe out into Raito's ear, "Why? What do my caresses make you feel, Light-kun?"

"Nothing," snapped Raito, glaring at him while he shoved him back.

"Liar, liar, liar," sang Beyond delightedly, gazing at him with wide, crimson-shaded eyes, sparkling with crazed joy. "You like my caresses, you like my-"

"Hush!" whispered Raito sharply, "The shopkeeper is looking at you strangely-"

Beyond let out a boisterous, crowing laughter. "I don't give a fuck about how the bloody woman looks at me!"

Raito shot the indignantly offended shopkeeper a polite, apologetic glance, before he swiftly gripped Beyond's forearm and pulled him out of the store, while he hissed under his breath, "You can't behave like that when we're in public!"

"Why not?" said Beyond, cocking his head to a side, staring at him unblinkingly. "Do I embarrass you?"

"No," said Raito coolly, "you embarrass yourself."

Beyond blinked at him and then cackled with amusement. "I don't care about that!"

"Fine, laugh your arse off, then," said Raito with exasperation, whilst he still pulled the boy with him along the busy street. "Now come on, we have to move faster or we won't meet the others on time."

* * *

Raito was seated in the dark, gazing up at the large cinema screen without really following the movie. He had Viviane seating by his right, with Yori beside her, and Beyond had taken a seat by his left, and he could hear Matt and Mello sniggering and whispering among themselves, one row behind him.

Ms. Yang had taken the youngest students to watch some PG movie for kiddies, and Mr. Harris had taken the oldest to see an action-packed thriller, which Raito was currently paying no attention to. Nevertheless, Mello had thrown a temper tantrum when he had seen that he was categorized as one of the kiddies, and had flatly refused to go with Ms. Yang's group. After many foul-mouthed curse words, the poor Mandarin teacher had glanced at Mr. Harris pleadingly, and with resignation, Mr. Harris had agreed to take Mello and Matt in his group, since where Mello went, Matt always followed.

Regardless, Raito knew that Mello wasn't interested in the movie either, only in being in the same room as him, in order to enact his plans. He could hear them snickering behind him, while soft beeping sounds issued from the handheld PSP that Matt had bought for himself that day.

Suddenly, he felt a warm breath blowing into left ear, and Raito purposely ignored it, once again. Then, his ear was flicked, and he inwardly sighed with irked annoyance. In a few seconds, a lock of his hair was twirled, and Ratio briefly closed his eyes to gather patience and rein in his temper. Then, Beyond started again, blowing into his ear, flicking his ear shell, twirling his hair… all under the mantle of darkness, while the movie played on and loud booming and gunshot sounds reverberated throughout the cinema auditorium.

But Raito didn't react to Beyond's taunting games. After the bathtub-and-kiss incident in the morning, and during the shopping spree in London, he had realized that the older boy always enjoyed when he managed to unsettle and anger him, and that those things seemed to spur Beyond further. Thus, he had adopted the tactic of being impassively collected or indifferent towards the boy. It took him great effort not to snap at Beyond at present, since the boy was blowing into his left ear for the umpteenth time. But Raito managed it, knowing that it was the best tactic in the end. If he didn't react, Beyond had to get bored, eventually.

Abruptly, his shoulder was sharply poked from behind, and Raito thanked some deity, he didn't believe in, that Mello had finally decided to get going. He side-glanced over his shoulder, and saw Matt and Mello surreptitiously scurrying away from the auditorium. His gaze then snapped to Mr. Harris, who was seated a few rows in front of him. The teacher's head lulled to a side and his eyes were closed, and Ratio could hear soft snores. He inwardly chuckled with fond amusement – it had to be old age, and also that an educated man as Mr. Harris would obviously find a movie such as this highly uninteresting.

Instantly, he shifted to a side to get up, but when he saw Viviane quizzically glancing at him, he leaned towards her and whispered, "Not feeling too good. Something I ate. I'm going to the bathroom."

She nodded in sympathy, and Raito crouched as he filed away from the row of seats. He didn't even have to look back to know that Beyond was following him, probably curious. But he didn't care too much about it.

Finally, he left the auditorium and found Matt and Mello excitedly waiting for him at the lobby of the movie theatre.

"Alright," said Raito coolly, "where do you want to go?"

Mello inspected him closely, and widely smirked. "You aren't putting up a fight?"

"Why should I?" replied Raito impassively. "A deal is deal. You made me a driver's license, so now it's my turn to keep my end of the bargain."

"Fucking great," said Mello, shooting him a large grin. "Then follow us and-"

Suddenly, the boy clamped his mouth shut, before he pointed at something over Raito's shoulder, and groaned angrily, "What's the frigging weirdo doing here?" He glowered at Raito, and demanded sharply, "Did you tell him that-"

"I didn't," interrupted Raito calmly, seeing from the corner of his eyes how Beyond reached his side.

Mello angrily stomped his foot on the floor, and glowered darkly at Beyond. "Leave, you freak, we don't fucking want you here!"

"Watch what you call me, brat," snarled Beyond, narrowing his crimson-shaded eyes at Mello. He bared his teeth at the boy in a deranged toothy grin, and added in a low tone of voice, "Do you want me to bite you, runt? You look tasty."

Raito arched an amused eyebrow when he saw Mello faltering, while Matt pulled on the boy's sleeve in warning. Finally, Mello darkly glowered at both Raito and Beyond, and snapped crisply, "Fine, come along, but put your frigging pet on a leash, Andrew!"

"You dare call me a pet?" growled Beyond, taking a threatening step forward and towering over Mello. A large creepy smirk curled his lips, and he hissed, "Say something like that again and I will rip your throat, runt. I love the taste of blood, and I'm sure yours will be very sweet given all the chocolate you always gobble down. What I did to V will pale in comparison to what I'll do to you, brat. So hold your fucking tongue around me."

"Let's go, Mello," interjected Matt, warily glancing at them while he pulled on Mello's sleeve.

Mello had marginally paled, but he huffed angrily and spun around on his heels, saying haughtily over his shoulder, "What-fucking-ever. Follow us."

Raito inwardly smirked with amusement as he followed the pair of young boys out of the cinema, with Beyond slouching by his side.

"See, that's how you deal with the runts," said Beyond, shooting him a smug, crooked smirk.

Raito softly snorted. "That only works for you. Mello wouldn't believe me if I threatened to bite him."

"Pity," said Beyond airily, before he cocked his head to a side. "Where are we going?"

"No idea," replied Raito, inwardly grimacing. "They asked me to accompany them to a store, and I bet anything that it won't be a place I'll like."

"But you're doing it anyway," remarked Beyond. Then, he lopsidedly grinned at him. "I would have never pegged you as a willing babysitter, Andrew."

"I'm hardly that," scoffed Raito, and he groaned when he saw that the two young boys had entered a dark, seedy alley that branched off the commercial street.

He followed them quickly and saw them standing in front of a store with no windows or sign, with its front painted in a bright, flashy red. Matt and Mello were almost rocking on the balls of their feet with eager and mischievous excitement, and Raito was beginning to regret his decision of keeping his end of the deal.

Instantly, Mello pulled Raito's sleeve, just as he opened the front door of the shop, and whispered sharply, "Your task is to chat her up while we shop, and then to buy the stuff for us by using your new driver's license."

And with that, Mello pushed Raito into the store, before he and Matt quickly rushed towards the shelves, sniggering and chuckling under their breaths.

Raito stood rooted in place. The brats had taken him to a – sex shop. He could hardly believe it. From all the possible options, this one hadn't crossed his mind.

He heard a crow of barking laughter, and snapped his head to glare at Beyond, who was widely smirking at him, his head cocked to a side. "Didn't see this one coming, did you? I have to give it to the runts, they tricked you very well, Andrew."

"They didn't trick me," hissed Raito under his breath. "I knew it would be someplace I wouldn't like, but I didn't imagine…" He wildly gestured at the shelves. "This! Mello's twelve and Matt's eleven, for heaven's sake!"

Beyond's smirk grew larger and creepier. "I could bet anything that Mello has already turned thirteen, and you should know that not everyone is sexually repressed and stunted as you are, Andrew. It's only natural for them to be curious about this stuff, even if they are prodigies."

"I'm not stunted or repressed," said Raito sharply, "I'm simply not interested in-"

"Excuse me! Excuse me, boy, but you can't-"

Raito swirled around to glance at the shopkeeper, who was a young woman of gothic style appearance and clothes, with a plain, round, pimpled face, and pierced in so many places that he inwardly winced and grimaced.

"I'm eighteen years old," he said, instantly showing her his fake driver's license and shooting at her his most charming smile, for he knew that this was his task, 'chatting her up' as Mello had put it.

She inspected the ID closely, giving it back to him, before she glanced at Mello and Matt, who were guffawing and playing with the items in the store. "You can stay, but the kids can't. It's illegal for me to allow-"

"Miss," interrupted Raito politely, flashing her a gorgeous smile, "please allow them to stay. They won't be buying anything, only I will. I'm their older cousin and I promised them that I would take them here for their birthday…"

"I'm going to explore," came a whisper into his ear, sounding highly amused and cheerful. "Have fun with her. I can already see that you would make a beautiful couple together."

Irritated, Raito dismissively waved Beyond off, while he continued with his charming tirade. By the end of it, he had the shopkeeper twisted around his little finger, and he stayed with her while the others had their fun, since he had no interest at all in inspecting what the shop sold.

After twenty minutes had passed, he considered that he had fulfilled his end of the bargain with Mello, and that it was time to leave to get back to the cinema. He quickly made his way towards Matt and Mello, who was holding something in his hand, loudly sniggering while the shopkeeper threw annoyed glares at him.

"Give me that, and let's get going," said Raito commandingly, instantly snatching it away from Mello's hands. Then he saw what he was holding: it was rubbery, and pink…a dildo, in the shape of a large, bulbous penis.

"Gah!" He immediately let it drop from his hand unto a shelf, his expression one of utter disgust, while Matt and Mello guffawed at his expense.

"Let's go," he said flatly, regaining his cool composure as he glanced down at them from his full height, "we only have ten minutes before the movie ends."

"Fine," said Mello, widely smirking at him while holding up a red plastic basket filled to the brim, "but you have to buy these goodies for us first. It is part of the frigging deal."

"Then give me your money," interjected Raito, sweetly smilling at him, which he knew irked the boy, while he held out an awaiting hand.

Mello scowled, before he dug into his pockets and slapped a bunch of wrinkled pound bills into Raito's hand. Coolly, Raito grabbed the basket and made his way towards the counter, inspecting the items the younger boys wanted him to buy for them. It was as expected: it was filled with porn – magazines, DVDs, calendars, posters, and the like. He perused them with ill-hidden revulsion, making sure that the boys hadn't hidden anything worse, and then he found two handcuffs. He held them up and arched an eyebrow while he stared at the boys.

Matt actually had the gall to impishly grin at him. Raito raised his eyebrow even higher, conveying that cute, heart-melting grins given by eleven-year-olds didn't remotely sway him, and Matt instantly dropped his grin.

"What?" snapped Mello mutinously, glowering up at him, before he widely smirked with excitement. "They are frigging awesome!"

"They are, Andrew," piped in Matt, crossing his arms over his chest. "And a deal is a deal."

Raito rolled his eyes, wisely decided not to ask questions about why they wanted handcuffs, and he set the basket on the counter. After paying for all the things, he thrust the bags into Matt's and Mello's hands, and proceeded to escort the boys out of the store. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Beyond happily paying for something, and he suspiciously narrowed his eyes at him. The older boy shot him a wide, crooked smirk, while grabbing his own bag, and following them out of the shop.

"Let's go to a fucking pub!" said Mello eagerly. "We still have time and I want to have my first frigging beer!"

"Yeah," interjected Matt excitedly, "and I want to try a smoke-"

"You're not having beers or cigarettes," interrupted Raito sharply, grasping both of them by their scruffs and pulling them forward along the busy street.

"Hey!" snapped Mello, turning his head around to indignantly glare at him. "You can't fucking manhandled us, and we want to go to a frigging pub!"

"That wasn't part of the deal," said Raito in a steely tone of voice, still moving them forward by their scruffs.

"You aren't our father," complained Matt sharply. "You cannot tell us what we can or cannot do."

"Thank goodness for that," interjected Raito impassively, "you two would drive insane any parent." He smirked at them, and added, "You can think of me as your older brother. And you aren't going to have a beer or cigarettes on my watch."

"Older brother my fucking ass!" hissed Mello angrily, trying to break free from Raito's grasp.

Raito tightened his grip on them, and whispered sharply, "We are going back to the movie theatre, and don't you dare make a public scene or I'll persuade Roger to raid your rooms in search for forbidden items, like the ones you just bought."

Mello spluttered in anger, but Matt quickly whispered to him conspiratorially, "That's fine, we will have another chance, Mello. Remember our adventure for the next month. He won't stop us then."

"Oh, that's fucking right, my friend," drawled Mello, smirking widely at Raito over his shoulder.

"We'll see about that," interjected Raito coolly.

"We frigging will," said Mello smugly. Then he darkly glowered at him over his shoulder, and spat, "You can fucking release us. We won't make a fucking scene!"

"Release you?" said Raito, chuckling softy while he tightened his grip on their napes. "Oh, no, Mello. This is exactly how we're going to get back into the movie theatre, and this is exactly how Mr. Harris will find us. Me forcefully escorting back Wammy's House's miscreants, after I found them slithering away from the cinema."

Matt snapped his head around to pierce him with his dark blue eyes, and said with sudden realization, "You had this planned from the start!"

"Of course I did," said Raito, widely smirking at him, "I have a reputation to uphold as Wammy's House's best model student. It's the perfect explanation for our escapade, and it suits my purposes. I'm going to tell Mr. Harris that I found you two scurrying away from the cinema, when I was coming out of the bathroom. And of course, since I'm such an outstanding, responsible, young man, I went after you. And then I brought you back to the cinema, before you did any mischief."

"You fucking hypocrite!" hissed Mello angrily.

"I am, aren't I?" said Raito coolly, his smirk widening.

"How are you going to fucking explain that B is with us?" snapped Mello, nastily grinning.

"Simple," replied Raito, charmingly smiling at him, while he side-glanced at Beyond, who was walking by his side, slouching and observing them with vicious amusement, "where I go, B usually follows. So it isn't strange that he followed me when I followed you."

Mello's lips curled upwards, and he said snidely, "So he is your frigging pet-"

"Shut up," whispered Matt sharply, elbowing his partner in crime, "you don't want to piss off B again, he has warned you two times already. Besides, Andrew's excuse works for us. He has every teacher and grown up in Wammy's charmed and coiled around his little finger – he has even charmed V, for fuck's sake! So as long as we do our stuff with him around, we have a valid cover."

"Exactly," said Raito, shooting him a warm smile. "This situation works for both of us. So all you have to do is follow my lead."

Mello grumbled angrily, darkly scowling, but obeyed as Raito proceeded to pull forward both boys by their scruffs, making their way along the busy commercial street, reaching the movie theatre.

"It's nice to see you finally controlling the runts," whispered Beyond into his ear, sounding vastly amused and cheerful, while he crookedly smirked at him.

And Raito smirked back at him, with genuine companionability.

* * *

_August__ 2, 2000_

L Lawliet was curled up in a swivel chair, with his bare feet flat on the seat and his legs bent to his chest, since truthfully, his deductive skills and fast process of thought improved by 73 percent in that position.

He was in a room he had assigned as his headquarters, part of his luxurious hotel suite in Moscow. He had taken up a new case in the city two days ago, but currently, he was unblinkingly gazing at an email sent by Roger. He frequently received them, since he liked to be kept informed about certain students in Wammy's House. And what Roger had to say perturbed him – it seemed that Andrew-kun was still frequently seen with B.

L shoved a thumb between his lips, and gently nibbled on it as he gazed up at the ceiling, his mind fast at work.

He had seen both boys from a distance, a week ago when he had taken a brief break between cases and returned to London. Quillsh had wanted to visit Roger, his old friend, and he had left both men at Wammy's House, before adventuring to London, knowing that he would find Wammy's House students there, in their monthly trip.

Dressed as any ordinary British man for a summer yet cloudy London day, he had been wearing a trench coat, a hat that cast his face in shadows, and an empty bag he had nicked from some store, for his cover as a common shopper. And he had observed the students during their lunch. He had seen Near and Mello, and they looked older but pretty much the same as when had seen them from a distance in a similar occasion. But his attention had been focused on the new boy he still regarded as his best choice for a successor.

Andrew Jones was mystery. And if it wasn't for Quillsh's connections, they would have never snatched the boy. One of Roger's duties, as director of Wammy's House, was to search worldwide for young prodigies – orphaned children- and to test them to gauge their abilities. That was why Andrew Jones wouldn't have been discovered if it wasn't that Andrew's former Headmaster had been an old acquaintance of Quillsh. Both men had attended university at Cambridge, when they were young, after World War II. Both came from wealthy British families, and had kept in touch over the years.

That was why Andrew's former Headmaster had contacted Roger at Wammy's House, since the old man had known that Wammy's House was a school which had been set up by Quillsh, to train prodigies. Thus, the old Headmaster had sent Andrew's scores on his entrance exams and his grades in the school to Roger – and they had been superb. But if it hadn't been for the Headmaster, Roger wouldn't have picked up Andrew, since Roger never looked for orphans in expensive, private, British schools.

After seeing Andrew's perfect grades and scores, Roger had researched him, and found out that Andrew Jones, and his Aunt Nancy, were fake identities. Hence, Roger had concluded that Andrew was really an orphan, running away from something. After testing the boy, Roger had immediately sent L Andrew's scores. And for the first time, L had found a young boy who had matched his scores on those tests, and even surpassed him in some sections. That had immensely piqued his curiosity and interest, which had risen even more after speaking to Andrew-kun and observing him through the camera of his laptop.

He had decided right then that Andrew-kun was the best option in case he ever needed a successor. It was due to Andrew-kun's scores, but even more due to what he had seen in the boy's eyes: absolute self-confidence, fierce ambition, sharpness and brilliancy of mind, manipulative slyness, and something nasty and cynical which denoted that the boy had gone through some experience in life which had ripped away any rose-tinted vision of the world.

It was clear to him that 'Andrew' was hiding from something, that the boy had many secrets, and that the teenager was –with a certainty of 85 percent- of Japanese ancestry or originally Japanese himself. Furthermore, L had found Andrew-kun's features familiar, somehow. Given his excellent photographic memory, he could only deduce that he had either seen the boy in some city street, in one of his numerous trips to Asia, or that he had seen someone related to the boy.

Regardless, as much as he tried, he couldn't reach a conclusive answer. He saw too many people in his line of work and during his trips, and he remembered all faces, but none were similar to Andrew-kun's uncommon Japanese features. Though, he would certainly keep it in mind, since something told him that he was on the right track. And he always followed his instincts.

He could tell apart a guilty criminal from a crowd, with his mind piecing together scattered bits of information, and jumping forward to conclusions before he even had the evidence to back it up. Years of experience had given him that ability, which he called 'instincts', and he was always right.

Therefore, he was 95 percent certain that he directly or indirectly knew Andrew-kun or a relative of his from someplace. Nevertheless, he wouldn't dig into the boy's past in order to find Andrew-kun's real identity, not unless he had the time, and a good reason, for it.

What currently mattered was what to do about the boy, and if he needed to talk to him again through his laptop, since what he had seen in London had unsettled him, and that almost never happened.

He had followed B and Andrew from a distance, after the boys' lunch, and not for the first time, B had inexplicably known he was there. He had only met B twice, long time ago. The first time, speaking to him through his laptop, and the second time in person, spending several hours with the younger boy. In both occasions, he had been disappointed with B. It wasn't because of B's lack of brilliancy, but due to the obsessive, dangerous, and deranged glint he had seen in the boy's eyes. From hence forward, and even for more reason when Near, Mello, and Matt had started besting B in school and in the tests, he had lost interest in B, knowing that the younger boy wasn't a candidate to succeed him.

The problem was that B had attached himself to Andrew-kun, and that perturbed him since he didn't want the teenager to influence Andrew-kun in any way. L had immediately realized that B had taken a dangerous interest in Andrew-kun, because B knew that L was interested in the boy himself. He knew perfectly well that B tried to copy him in everything, and that the teenager was obsessed with him, and now, apparently with Andrew-kun as well.

What he had not expected was the possessiveness and smugness in B, who had actually smirked at him while throwing an arm over Andrew-kun's shoulders. In other past occasions, when B inexplicably picked him out of crowds, the younger boy's eyes had always lit up with excitement, worship, and admiration towards him. Never had B smirked at him before.

And L had been slightly alarmed by it, since it was clear to him that B thought that they were in some type of contest regarding Andrew-kun. He could tell that B was possibly manipulating Andrew-kun for his own purposes. Thankfully, he had seen Andrew-kun shoving off B's arm and sharply whispering at him. Indeed, L would have been very disappointed in Andrew-kun if the boy had done nothing. And at least, he knew that whatever game B was playing, Andrew-kun was also playing back.

A corner of L's lips quirked upwards, while he pressed his thumb against his lower lip. Yes, Andrew-kun could take care of himself, since the boy was slyly manipulative. He had seen with infinite fascination how Andrew-kun wore different masks around everyone, and how the boy had cunningly attached himself to Near, Matt, and Mello, according to Roger's reports. It was clear that Andrew-kun was investing in making useful contacts in the school.

But what had mesmerized him the most was when Andrew-kun had dropped his masks to whisper angrily at B, after shoving B's arm off his shoulders. Gone had been the impassive, cool, charming, noble and perfect, model student, and he had seen a strong temper and dominating nature in Andrew-kun's chestnut eyes - which just added more qualities to his first assessment of the boy.

Andrew-kun was self-centered, borderline-narcissistic, arrogant, highly competitive, very prideful and driven, resourceful, ambitious, sly, and a superb liar, actor, and manipulator. The young boy changed masks so quickly and deftly that L was fascinated by it, wondering what truly lay behind, and what that brilliant, cunning mind was thinking and hiding.

And one of the things he wondered about the most was why Andrew-kun was keeping company with B. He knew B's reasons and motives, since it was clear that B had initially taken an interest in Andrew-kun after finding out that L was interested in the boy, and that then, B had become obsessed with Andrew-kun on his own accord. Furthermore, he had also been informed in detail by Roger about how B had bitten V, and after quarreled with Andrew-kun. He also knew that Andrew-kun had been ordered to stay away from B. So why was Andrew-kun still around the older boy?

Suddenly, L halted his process of thought when he caught sight of Quillsh setting down a tray loaded with pastries, cakes, and strawberries. He widely grinned at the old man- the only person he was fond of and whom he loved, in his way- and quickly took the fork.

He daintily grabbed it by its tip, with his thumb and index finger, spreading out the other fingers, and dangling the fork in mid air, before he eagerly attacked a sugary, mouth-watering, strawberry and chocolate cake.

He briefly closed his eyes in delighted contentment, feeling the sugar sweetly trickling down his throat. And soon, it would be pumping through his veins, making his mind rush, working twice as fast.

Cheerfully, he loaded his fork again and instantly shoved it in his mouth, leaving the fork dangling from his lips while his tongue swirled around the sugary and spongy morsel of cake. His huge black pupils widened even further, and immediately, he logically extrapolated that Andrew-kun put up with B's company because there was something that Andrew-kun wanted from the older boy. Certainly, more information about L himself, but also, it was logical to conclude that Andrew-kun kept B close to him because B might know something about Andrew-kun. A shared secret, perhaps? No, Andrew-kun would never willingly divulge information about himself. Then it was something B had discovered… Andrew-kun's real identity? Possibly, with a probability of 45 percent.

L grinned, and his fingers gently popped a sugar-coated strawberry into his awaiting mouth. He hummed with joy, and immediately decided that he would talk to Andrew-kun in a week or two, giving more time to see how Andrew-kun's relationship with B evolved.

Satisfied, and as much as he was fascinated with the complex puzzle that was Andrew-kun, he decided to push the intriguing and challenging boy away from his thoughts. And he daintily clicked the button of his mouse, to open the attached file that Roger had sent by email – Matt's report on his discoveries regarding Y.

L shifted slightly in his seat, while he unblinkingly gazed at his laptop screen, his eyes quickly reading the report.

Matt explained that he had tracked Y's IP address after the mysterious man had sent an email to Belarus' police force. L hummed. Yes, he had solved that case in a few weeks, and he also knew that Y had reached the same conclusions as he had, and that the police force had been grateful for Y's untraceable inputs. It seemed that Y was quickly gaining notoriety. It wouldn't be too long for police forces to send emails to Y, asking for the man's advice. He fleeting wondered if Y would attend to cases in person or if he would emulate him. Given how Y had chosen a letter for an alias, emulating L, it was 95 percent probable that Y would also copy him in his methods of using another person to establish contact with a police force. Did Y have the resources for it – to have his own Watari?

L's mind sped and lurched forward, while he kept reading Matt's report. The boy explained –with evident frustration- that the initial IP address he had caught had immediately changed. In fact, Y's IP address had wildly changed every few seconds, non-stop for two weeks. Thus, Matt had been unable to pin-point a location. Then, the pattern had changed, and the ever-shifting IP address had stayed the same for twenty four hours, and Matt had discovered from where it came - La Paz, Bolivia.

L blinked, and soon, his lips curved upwards and he shoved his thumb in between them, as he kept reading. The IP address had been located in La Paz, for twenty four hours, before it changed again, skipping to another country and remaining fixed for another whole day. And that pattern was repeated for ten more days. And then -had written Matt with obvious amusement- the IP address had stayed the same, located in a small town, and hadn't changed ever since.

The small town was Ekwok, Alaska.

L gently nibbled on his thumb, his grin spreading. And he read once more the list of towns and cities to which Matt had traced the IP address, when it didn't change for twenty four hours.

_La Paz, Bolivia; Orleans, France; Ottawa, Canada; K__athmandu, Nepal; __Innsbruck, Austria; New Delhi, India; Gerona, Spain; Florence, Italy; Ohio City, Ohio, US; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Montevideo, Uruguay; Ekwok, Alaska, US._

A dopey grin spread over L's face. He had instantly caught the message, of course; meant for anyone seeking Y. It could be constructed from the first letter of every city and town: 'Looking for me'.

And L could easily imagine the interrogation mark after it; mocking, taunting, and challenging. So Y wanted to play? Oh, this was fun! L's grin spread wider.

The clue, certainly, was 'Ekwok, Alaska', since Matt said that the IP address had stayed unchanging, to be traced back to that town. L had never heard of it, but quickly, he balled his hands and used his index fingers to daintily and swiftly type on his keyboard. He searched in the Internet for the town, and brought up the few webpages related to Ekwok.

L eyes quickly scanned the information, his excited grin becoming larger. _Ekwok, population of 130… 42 households… 91.54 percent Native Americans... _Nope, nothing there.

Then, he saw the messages displayed on the webpage, and something caught his attention. There was an 'Yvonne' gushing about her trip to Ekwok, and how her grandchildren had adored the town. He instantly brought up the rest of the webpages, and he saw in all of them messages written by 'Yvettes', 'Yolandas', 'Yasmins', and the like. All of them writing about how her dog had loved the snow in Ekwok, or how her little daughter had charmed the villagers, and such… And then, some of them offered their emails at Globalnet, saying that they would send pictures of their daughters, dogs, or grandchildren in Ekwok, if anyone was interested.

Obviously, the email addresses were fake, but a 'Yolanda' had written that she had created a forum for Ekwok in Globalnet, and that those interested should check it out. Eagerly, L daintily typed the Internet address offered, and a simple window popped in his laptop's screen, and he quickly read the messages. There was someone asking what Ekwok was, there was another person who inquired if it was a village in Africa, and at last, he saw it.

_Sleuth: This is a boring forum. Where is Yolanda? I wanted to ask her to send me pictures of Ekwok and her hot, teenage daughter. Does anyone know when she logs in? I'm looking for her. Anyway, this forum sucks. Good-bye losers._

L shoved a thumb in between his lips, and a corner of his mouth quirked upwards. So Sleuth was Y, and he sounded like a spoilt, rude, hormonal teenager, but that was probably on purpose. So maybe Y wrote like that to appear to be a teenager when he was really a man, or maybe he was truly a teenager… Hmm, it ran in circles, and he didn't have enough information to deduce Y's age. But he was certain about Y's gender, and also that he was probably a young man, certainly younger than thirty.

Oh, he itched to write something back, using the keyword 'looking', like Y had done. But he refrained from doing so. He had a case to solve and it would be infinitely more fun to let Y stew for a month or so, before replying. Nevertheless, he would play with Y, and find out all he could about the man who obviously considered himself to be L's competitor, and who was seeking to dethrone him.

L widely grinned at the challenge, and popped another sugar-coated strawberry into his mouth, while he hummed with delighted cheerfulness.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me. I only own this story and make no profit from this.

AN:

Sorry for the mistake, and thanks to all of you for letting me know that I had posted the wrong chapter 8. I have such a jumble of documents in my ffnet page since I'm editing the ANs of my other two fics, that I got one fic's chapter 8 mixed with this fic's chapter 8. Anyway, sorry for that. Oh, I have finals coming up, so won't be updating for a while, since I have to study a lot, but I'll probably post a chapter during my Christmas holidays. Also, I'm going to have larger time-jumps in the next chapters, since I don't want this story to drag too long during Raito's years at Wammy's, since the most interesting stuff will happen when he returns to Japan.

Answering some reviewers: Matt and Mello didn't buy sextoys in the shop, they simply bought porn magazines and videos, like any curious kid, and two pairs of handcuffs. Also, Beyond isn't gay because he wants to emulate L. In fact, we don't know what L's sexual inclinations are, if any. Beyond is simply attracted to Raito, on his own volition. And there has been no mention of Beyond's past experiences. I would say that BB hasn't been attracted to anyone, male or female, in the past.

Also, to the readers of Vindico Atrum: I have not abandoned that story, but the truth is that I felt inspired after watching the Death Note anime and I wanted to try my hands in the DN fandom. Moreover, it takes me much more time and days to write a single chapter for VA, since the plot for The Black Heir and the VA is much more detailed and complex than the plot for this fic -for now. Therefore, and since I have been busy with my studies, I decided to write chapters for this fic, since even though it takes me a lot of hours, it still takes me much less time to write this fic than to write a chapter for the VA. Nevertheless, even though I won't be updating VA as frequently as before, I will still complete it. As a matter of fact, I have already decided each plot twist that will happen in the VA, and I have already decided how it will end, but writting it and making sure to link all past details and clues, takes me a lot, LOT of time. So I'll certainly finish the story, because I have already planned what I want to write for each future chapter, but I can't say how long it will take me.

**Question:** How many more chapters would you like to have covering Raito's time in Wammy's House, and what type of scenes would you like to read: interaction with Matt& Mello, with Near, with Viviane, or with Beyond, or more information about what Raito is studying and learning in his classes, or what he's doing as Y?

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Not much happens, but it sets the mood for the next few chapters. Enjoy it and tell me what you think! And MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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**Chapter 8**

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_August__ 26, 2000_

L was unblinkingly gazing at the video image displayed in his computer's flat screen, feeling uneasy and perturbed.

Yesterday, he had spoken to Roger, asking the man to get Andrew, since he wanted to talk to the boy. But Roger had called him back with disturbing news. The man had gone into Andrew's room, it had been early in the morning, and he had found B curled on the bed, behind Andrew, both deep asleep. Roger had left without waking them up, to communicate this to L.

During a whole day, L had pondered about this disturbing and unexpected event. Finally, he had asked Roger to surreptitiously set up a laptop in Andrew's bedroom, early at dawn, so that he could see and listen through the laptop's imbedded camera and microphone.

Currently, in his hotel suite in Moscow, that was exactly what he was doing. The image in his flat screen showed Andrew's bedroom, suffused in the twilight of dawn. The boy was under the bed covers, and had his back turned to the laptop, but L could tell that Andrew-kun was asleep given the low, rhythmic pattern of breathing that he heard coming from his computer's speakers.

Since Andrew had his back turned to the laptop in the room, L couldn't see his face, but he could see, over Andrew's shoulder, part of B's face. The older boy was now awake, gazing at Andrew-kun sleeping, and still hadn't caught sight of the laptop on the desk. It was on purpose, of course, since L had asked Roger to set up the laptop in the room without waking up the boys, and he hadn't sent his logo image to the laptop. Thus, he knew that the laptop's screen was of a muted black, as if shutdown, instead of glowing with whitish light. Therefore, it remained undetected, for now.

Nevertheless, when he had seen B waking up, he had expected the boy to notice the laptop. But, to his consternation, B's gaze had never left Andrew, looking at the boy with fascination.

At present, L leaned his face closer to his flat screen, trying to read the emotions on B's face, as the boy kept gazing at Andrew. He admitted to himself, that when it came to unraveling emotions, his deductive abilities were 54 percent worse than when employed to solve criminal cases, but what he saw in B's face was easy to read, and it both perplexed and worried him.

There was possessiveness, satisfaction, mesmerization, but also tenderness and – affection. L blinked, and shoved a thumb in between his parted lips, nibbling on it. He had been partly wrong in his initial assessment; B wasn't simply manipulating Andrew-kun. It seemed that B had also developed deeper feelings for the boy. Yes, he was 83 percent certain about that.

Abruptly, L felt a strange gut-wrenching twist, and he quickly blinked, puzzled, his thumb dropping from his lips. He felt angry- why? He slightly frowned.

But any further intention of introspective self-exploration faded away from his thoughts when he saw B slowly running his fingers through Andrew's auburn hair. Then, there was a soft sigh – Andrew-kun's, certainly, though the boy was still asleep. Nevertheless, as B continued caressing Andrew's hair, L saw the younger boy slightly shifting on the bed, and then stilling. And B quickly dropped his hand away from Andrew's hair. So Andrew-kun had awoken…

L inched his face closer to his flat screen, his eyes wide, trying not to miss a single detail, while he nibbled on his thumb. He heard Andrew-kun whispering, but he couldn't discern what was being said, and he nibbled on his thumb harder, disappointed and aggravated that he couldn't tell what was happening between the boys.

He was starting to feel very irked and annoyed, when suddenly he heard B whispering back something, while the boy inched his face closer to Andrew-kun's. And before he even processed what he was doing, L sharply stabbed a button of his keyboard, sending his logo to the laptop in Andrew's bedroom.

Instantly, B's face was bathed in a white light, and the boy's dark eyes snapped to the laptop, widening. From L's point of view, it looked as if B was staring right back at him. The seventeen-year-old boy had frozen, before a superior, threatening smirk curled the boy's lips. And L felt that strange, irrational spike of anger surging in him, again. Anger towards B… over Andrew-kun?

L shifted uneasily on his seat, perturbed, and not liking his reaction one bit, and not understanding it, either. Nevertheless, he stared at his flat screen with wide, unblinking eyes, intently observing how the boys reacted…

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Raito shifted slightly in his sleep, his mind slowly drifting away from the foggy unconsciousness of his dreams… He had been dreaming something pleasant, not his usual nightmares of the night when his family had been murdered… He felt cozy and warm… He had been dreaming of someone caressing him…

Instantly, his eyes flew open and his gaze locked with Beyond's wide, crimson-shaded eyes, who was looking at him with an innocent expression on his face, which didn't fool him at all. He had caught sight of the hand that Beyond had quickly pulled away. So the older boy had been caressing his hair – again.

Raito suppressed any irritated anger, since he knew that that reaction didn't work.

The day after the bathtub-and-kiss incident, and after their trip to London, he had woken up to see an arm casually thrown over his waist. He had turned around and encountered Beyond sharing his bed, lopsidedly grinning at him, utterly unabashed. The older boy had surreptitiously accommodated himself in the bed during the night, without Raito realizing it. Of course, spluttering with anger, Raito had instantly shoved the boy out of the bed, punching, kicking and yelling. But Beyond had simply danced away from his attack, cackling with crowing, amused laughter. And night after night, Raito woke up to find Beyond sharing his bed. He either woke up feeling Beyond curled behind him, and with the boy's arm thrown over his torso or waist, or he woke up face-to-face with the older boy, their gazes locking together.

For the first two weeks, Raito had always kicked Beyond out of his bed, trying to beat him to a pulp. But he had eventually realized that the older boy was simply amused by his infuriated reaction. Therefore, he had changed tactics, and during the last two weeks he had allowed Beyond to share his bed - always on top of the covers, of course. But he also began to allow it because he had realized that his usual nightmares hadn't plagued his nights over the last month. Obviously, he didn't attribute this to Beyond's presence on his bed. Raito firmly told himself that it was merely because he felt something by his side. Indeed, he could have a sack of potatoes by his side on the bed, and he was sure that his nightmares wouldn't come to him, either. It was merely because he felt a presence, nothing more. Certainly not because it was Beyond who shared his bed.

Regardless, given all his reasons and his change in tactics, now he allowed the boy to sleep besides him, over the bed covers. And when he woke up, he simply pulled an unfazed and indifferent expression on his face, before he padded to his bathroom to get ready for the day.

Gratefully, Beyond had never tried to kiss him again over the last month. Nevertheless, the boy did other things. Raito usually woke up at the sensation of his hair being carded by fingers, his ear being blown by warm breath, or his cheek being gently caressed. He wasn't an idiot; he knew what Beyond was doing. The older boy was playing a game of seduction.

Thus, during the last days, Raito had pondered what to do about it and how he could use it for his own purposes. He had finally realized that if he was using intimacy to bind Viviane to him and to have power over her, then, that he could also use it to manipulate Beyond. The older boy still gave him cryptic answers when he asked about L, and he was getting nowhere with that.

But there was a slight problem. Raito had been forced to reluctantly admit to himself that he had actually liked his first and only kiss with Beyond; the one they had shared in the bathtub. And that disturbed him. For, if he went through with his plan of using intimacy to manipulate Beyond, then, he had to make sure that he would always stay in control. Intimacy was a tool of manipulation, nothing else. Not something to take pleasure in.

He had always considered intimacy and sex as something mundane and undignified, for lower beings. Surely not to be indulged by someone superiorly brilliant and outstanding like himself. Not that he was prepared to have sex with anyone – that would happen in the future, when he had a reason to use it- but he was willing to use kisses and caresses for his manipulations.

Nevertheless, the solution to his problem of having liked Beyond's kiss had instantly popped into his mind. During the last month, he still met Viviane to do homework together, and after using the library, they usually went back to her room, to continue studying. There, no one bothered them, and he had started engaging in snogging sessions with her. It was easy, since he didn't feel anything when he kissed or caressed her. And even though he was getting very skilled at it, given Viviane's soft moans and sighs, he always stayed in control because he felt no pleasure from what he did with her.

Therefore, he had realized that he could continue his intimate moments with her in order to balance whatever he did with Beyond. Then, it wouldn't matter if he enjoyed kissing Beyond, since he would also be seeing Viviane on a side. And that would help him stay in control over the situation, so that he would never feel any attachment towards Beyond.

He had decided that two days ago, but he still hadn't put it into practice. He was waiting for the proper time to use kisses to manipulate Beyond, in order to get information out of the older boy.

But now, as his sleepy gaze locked with Beyond's, he decided that perhaps it was time to begin the artful game of manipulation by intimacy.

Raito inwardly smirked, but something made him halt when he realized how Beyond was looking at him. There was something openly warm in the older boy's wide, crimson-shaded eyes. But it was masked very quickly before he could unravel it further.

Beyond lopsidedly grinned at him, but seemed hesitant to touch him again. Perhaps because Raito, even though he allowed the boy to sleep over the bed covers, would still angrily snap at the older boy when he woke up feeling the boy's fingers carding his hair, or any other caress the boy employed.

Pulling an impassive and cool expression over his face, Raito gazed back at him, his mind spinning with schemes about his new plan of manipulating the other boy with intimacy. Then, he saw Beyond unblinkingly staring at him, while nibbling on his lower lip. Raito saw that it was already puffed out and swollen, and he caught sight of a scarlet drop of blood breaking from the smooth skin of the boy's bottom lip.

"Don't do that," whispered Raito sharply, scowling at Beyond while he pressed his thumb in between the boy's parted lips, releasing Beyond's gnawed lower lip from the boy's teeth.

Beyond's lips curved into a lopsided grin, before he flicked out his tongue and licked Raito's thumb.

Glaring at him, Raito quickly pulled his finger away, and Beyond shot him a smug, crooked smirk. And in an instant, Raito saw the older boy inching his face closer to his. He momentarily stiffened, before his gaze flickered to Beyond's lips. But he relaxed when he remembered that this was all part of his plan. Yes, now was the ideal time to start his game. He would kiss the older boy, and taste him for the second time, knowing that even if he liked it, he would control the situation, without allowing himself to indulge in it or feel any attachment towards the boy.

Beyond kept inching his face closer to Raito's, and Raito's eyes focused on the boy's parted lips, which now curved into a smug, satisfied smirk. Immediately, making his decision, Raito's gaze flickered back to Beyond's wide, crimson-shaded eyes. And he also inched his face closer to the older's boys, while his heart loudly thumped in his chest, feeling eager to try out his plans, and also feeling a strange, warm and excited tingle rushing down his spine.

"Kiss me," whispered Beyond softly, his parted lips smirking while he bore his large eyes into Raito's.

Raito smirked back at him, and said in a low, silky voice, "I will."

Beyond blinked at him, surprised, before a creepy, triumphant, little smile broke on his face. And Raito wasted no time, since if he was going to do this, then he would be the one in control. He would take the bull by its horns. Never be said that Yagami Raito yielded to others, or that he was dominated. He slowly grabbed Beyond's nape, entangling his fingers in the boy's black, messy hair, and he pulled his mouth inches away from his, getting ready to kiss the older boy senseless.

Abruptly, Raito halted when a white glow spread over them, Beyond's features being bathed in light. Raito saw Beyond freezing, then the boy's gaze shot over Raito's shoulder, and a fierce, menacing smirk curled the older boy's lips.

Raito had also stiffened. And with his mind frantically speeding, he slowly turned on his bed, to see the source of the light. He instantly saw it; a laptop that wasn't his, on his desk, with its screen glowing white, with an ornate 'L' emblazoned on it.

At first, he felt embarrassed and mortified that L was seeing Beyond sharing his bed. But instantly, he felt a hot-red surge of fury. It was obvious that Roger had set up the laptop there, when they had been sleeping, so that L could see them. How dared the man spy on him!

Nevertheless, he wasn't going to show anger, much less any embarrassment. This was his room and he could do whatever he liked! Immediately, he pulled a nonchalant and cool expression over his features, and gracefully sat up on his bed, facing the laptop's screen.

From the corner of his eyes, Raito saw Beyond doing the same, but the boy's expression was different from his. Beyond was openly glaring at the laptop, his lips curved into a feral, threatening smirk, and it surprised Raito. When they hacked into police mainframes and studied L's reports on cases, Beyond always praised L, with obsessive admiration and borderline-worship. Then, why was Beyond reacting this way - openly confronting L?

But all his musings stopped when Beyond suddenly threw an arm over his shoulders. Immediately, Raito shot him an annoyed glare and sharply elbowed the older boy. Yes, he had decided to become intimate with Beyond for his purposes, but there was no way that he would allow the older boy to use him to make a scene in front of L. Whatever game Beyond was playing with L, Raito wouldn't be a pawn in it.

Beyond wheezed out in pain, doubling over and grasping his bruised ribs, while he shot Raito a wide-eyed, hurt glance.

Raito merely sweetly grinned at him, before his gaze focused back on the laptop, suppressing any furious glares, and staring at it with supreme impassiveness.

"B, I would like to speak to Andrew-kun alone," came out a robotic voice from the laptop's speakers. "Please leave the room."

A loud, crowing and frenzied laughter bubbled from Beyond's lips, and it also sounded mocking and snide to Raito's ears, but he said nothing since L didn't react to it either. Finally, he saw Beyond darkly glaring at the screen, before the boy briskly stood up with squared shoulders. Then, Beyond slouched towards the door and swiftly opened it, exiting the bedroom. But Raito caught him shooting at him a glance that he could only interpret as a warning, before the boy slammed the door shut after him. Clearly, Beyond's glance had been a warning, conveying to him that he shouldn't listen to whatever L had to say about them sharing a bed.

Raito inwardly scoffed. He didn't need to be warned. He was mightily furious at L as it was; not that he would show it, of course. Nevertheless, he was curious about what the man had to say, and he waited quietly for L to address him again.

A tense, awkward silence seemed to stretch in the room, before L finally spoke.

"Could you explain to me," said the robotic voice, "why B was sleeping with you on your bed, Andrew-kun?"

Raito pierced the screen with his eyes, and said coolly, "I don't see why I should. It's my business what I do, and with whom, L."

"I see," said the scrambled voice flatly, "then, you're in a relationship with him."

Raito marginally narrowed his eyes at the laptop. "I didn't say that."

"Then what are you doing with B?"

"As I said, it's no business of yours," said Raito calmly.

"It is, Andrew-kun," interjected the robotic voice.

Raito slightly frowned. The voice sounded petulant, like a child insisting on having the right to play with his toys. And he remembered that it wasn't the first time that L sounded childish to him. During their first conversation, the only one until now, he had fleeting thought that he had detected a kind of verbal pout in the robotic voice, before he had dismissed the notion as being ridiculous. He had always thought of L as being a serious and stern man. But now, he realized that he should reevaluate his assessment.

He didn't know the man's age, Beyond still hadn't told him, but now it was evident to him that L couldn't be that much older than them - perhaps in his mid twenties. The only thing he knew for sure about L was that the man had been one of the first orphans to attend Wammy's House. And even if L was a young man in his twenties, the man could still have childish mannerisms, since some of the older students in Wammy's House displayed such tendencies – like Beyond did.

He pulled out of his musings, and said impassively, "I truly don't see why my friendship with B should concern you."

"Then let me explain myself," said the scrambled voice, sounding curt and also vaguely angered, which made Raito inwardly arch an eyebrow in puzzlement. "At present, I consider you the best candidate to succeed me, once I retire or in the unlikely eventuality that I'm killed. Nevertheless, this relationship you have going with B only deducts points from my appraisal of you. A good detective must never be emotionally attached to anyone, Andrew-kun. Emotions impair your judgment, and being involved with someone will only avert your focus from what truly matters: solving cases and capturing criminals-"

"Are you telling me," interrupted Raito calmly, feeling a spike of anger which he didn't allow to show in his face, "that if I'm intimately involved with someone, that you'll stop regarding me as your best choice for a successor?"

"Exactly," said the robotic voice, with a hint of sulkiness. "How could I choose you, Andrew-kun, if you show me that you put in first place a relationship with someone, over other much more important matters, like the duty of capturing criminals?"

Riled, Raito shot the laptop an irritated glance, and said curtly, "You have nothing to fear in that regard."

Inwardly, he was seething at the man's presumptuousness and controlling nature. He had his priorities very clear, and indeed, relationships weren't something which interested him, simply something with which he could manipulate others. Furthermore, he didn't like L implying that he was easily swayed by emotions. He certainly wasn't! And despite not being interested in becoming L's successor -since he was Y and wanted to bring down the man, to steal L's place as the best detective in the world- he didn't want to seem less in L's eyes.

"I don't?" said the robotic voice, sounding interested and cunningly evaluative. "Then tell me, what are you doing with B?"

Raito pierced the laptop with his eyes, wondering why L instated so much on that issue. His personal life was his own, he didn't see why the man was interested in it, despite the feeble reasons L had given him.

"B is simply a good friend," lied Raito smoothly, staring at the screen with supreme impassiveness. "He's closer to my age than others, and he amuses me. That's all."

"Andrew-kun doesn't seem to me as someone who needs to have friends," said the robotic voice pointedly. "Indeed, I would say that Andrew-kun would only become close to someone if he wanted to get something out of them." It paused, and then added with veiled slyness and amusement, "I can only deduce that Andrew-kun is manipulating B, for some devious purpose of his."

Irked, Raito's eyebrow twitched, before he quickly composed himself and said placidly, "You're mistaken, L. I'm not using B. He's simply my friend." He let out an amused, melodious chuckle, and added with warm sincerity, "What could I possibly want from B? I score higher than him in every test and subject, and he isn't very level-headed, L. Surely you know this. He merely entertains me with his crazy, little quirks and stunts. Nothing more and nothing else."

"Andrew-kun gets entertained by insanity?" interjected the robotic voice. "I find that disturbing. I wouldn't want my successor to be someone who sympathizes with madmen, since many criminals are deranged. You're quickly losing points as a possible candidate to succeed me, Andrew-kun."

Raito felt an overwhelming surge of blazing anger, and wounded pride, and he said sharply, "I don't sympathize with criminals. B might be slightly insane, but he isn't a criminal." He smirked, and added tartly, "Furthermore, that I'm amused by him simply indicates that what I learn at Wammy's House comes so easily to me that I'm bored, and that I must resort to finding entertainment in someone like B."

"Andrew-kun is very arrogant and overconfident," remarked the scrambled voice airily.

Raito charmingly smiled, and got up from the bed to lean his face right in front of the little camera imbedded in the laptop's frame, while he whispered softly, "No, L. I'm simply honest. I'm certain that you have been monitoring how I'm doing in my grades and tests scores. There's no one better than me. I surpass everyone in this school, and my grades in all subjects and tests are perfect and the highest."

"That might be so," said the robotic voice unfazed, "but it still doesn't explain why you chose B, from all other students, to become your… friend. Or why he's sharing your bed. Friends don't share beds, Andrew-kun. I can logically extrapolate that you are indeed using B to glean information from him – information about me."

Chuckling with amusement, Raito leaned backwards, and gracefully sat on his swivel chair. "Why would I need information about you, L?" He gorgeously smiled at the screen, and added with admiration, "I want to be your successor, and I hope that someday you'll choose me and that I'll get to meet you. Therefore, I rather be patient and get to know you in person, instead of believing whatever wild hypothesis B might have about you. It isn't as if B knows you well, L. Thus, there's nothing that he knows that remotely interests me. Nevertheless, he does amuse me, and he is one of my friends. Just like Matt and Mello are also my friends."

He deeply sighed, looking at the laptop with a slightly vulnerable expression on his face. "You might think that I don't need friends, but you're mistaken. One can feel very lonely here, and many students form their own little groups of friends, in order to have some company. I could manage perfectly well with solitude, but I admit that I've found many interesting people here with whom I share some closeness. Everyone here is bright and highly intelligent, and so is B, despite his other flaws. Therefore, of course that I'm interested in having friends who are as smart as myself, L. As for sharing my bed, it's a simple a matter of companionship, because I know that B likes it. And as good friends do, I allow it to happen because I know that it brings B some happiness."

"Andrew-kun is a superb actor," said the robotic voice, sounding highly amused. "Indeed, if I was anyone else but the best detective in the world, I would have believed Andrew-kun's heartfelt declaration of his need for company and friends."

Raito almost balled his fists in raging anger. The man was impossibly and insufferably annoying! But he quickly repressed any desire to hiss furiously at the laptop, and he leaned back on his chair, with an openly hurt expression on his face.

"I do feel lonely sometimes, L," he said softly, averting his gaze from the screen, as if abashed for admitting such a weakness. He deeply sighed, and added as if revealing his deepest and most heart-breaking and painful secret, "I had a family once. I had an older brother, L, and we were very close. Sometimes, in my dreams, I see him. And yes, I miss him." He fleeting glanced at the screen, before he gazed down at the floor again, and murmured quietly, "Beyond reminds me of him. That's why I instantly felt close to him, and why he's my friend. He's like a brother to me, now. B was the first to approach me amiably, wanting to be my friend. And I accepted, because he looks very much like my older brother."

"I see," said the robotic voice, "and what happened to your family and older brother?"

Raito could tell that L wasn't completely believing him, but he answered softly, "They died, but I don't want to speak about it. I don't like to remember."

"I can understand that," said the scrambled voice, though it didn't sound remotely warm or sympathetic. Instead, it sounded interestedly amused, as if he was watching a superb and fascinating performance. "But I should warn you, Andrew-kun, that B doesn't have brotherly intentions towards you. I'm 95 percent certain that B was about to kiss you, right before I sent my logo to the laptop in your room, to speak to you."

"I know," said Raito, deeply sighing, while he deftly masked his irked irritation since L wasn't buying his act. He gazed at the screen, and added softly, with heart-felt resignation and warmth, "But he's still my friend, and I don't want to lose him. Regardless, that's all he'll be to me, L. He's a boy and I like girls, though I'm not interested in having an intimate relationship with anyone." He shrugged his shoulders, and said self-deprecatingly, with a hint of sorrow, "I don't want a relationship because I'm afraid of getting hurt if I lose someone for whom I feel an attachment – in the same way that I lost my family. And I never want to feel that pain again." Then he gazed up at the screen, and added with wistful hope, the lie smoothly rolling from his lips, "But someday, I would like to have a wife and children. Oh, I would never lose my focus, and I would always work very hard to catch criminals. But I also yearn for a happy home-life, in the future."

There was a brief stretch of silence, and finally the robotic voice said, "Andrew-kun is unexpectedly revealing many things to me."

"I feel that I can trust you, L," said Raito quietly, with a small, warm smile on his lips.

"I wonder what you're trying to make me believe, Andrew-kun," interjected the scrambled voice, sounding pensive and calculating, "with this show of alleged humanity and vulnerability."

"I confided in you," said Raito softly, suppressing all impulse to snap crisply at the man, "because I want you to understand that even though I want to have a family in the future, I also want to be your successor. And one doesn't exclude the other. I would never allow myself to be clouded by emotions, when working for you or when taking a job of my own to catch criminals. I can separate my private life from my work. I want you to understand that my wish to have a family isn't a weakness, and that you shouldn't consider it as such. I'll still be your best option to succeed you."

"Is that truly what you want?" said the robotic voice calmly. "To succeed me? Andrew-kun seems to be a very ambitious person. Surely you would rather make a name for yourself, instead of accepting my legacy."

"Oh, no," said Raito empathically, gazing at the screen with startled and humble wide eyes. "I don't think I could ever attain the level of deserved fame that you have given to the L alias. And everyone in Wammy's House must think the same, since we are all studying hard to be the best, so that you'll choose one of us to carry the mantle of L. I admit that I'm self-confident in my own abilities, but there's no way that I could ever surpass you. You must have decades of experience and I'm just a teenager. Thus, I prefer to be selected by you to become the next L, instead of spending years trying to make a name for myself. You see, it's more convenient for me to accept all that you have built –the name, the fame, the contacts and the reputation- instead of starting from zero. I am cunning enough to realize that becoming the next L is much more fruitful than any other option, since it would save me a lot of time."

"True," said the scrambled voice, sounding mildly satisfied. "Indeed, it would be much more intelligent for Andrew-kun to continue my legacy, instead of starting from scratch."

Inwardly, Raito widely smirked. The man had swallowed his lie. He might be arrogant, but so was L. The man clearly thought that everyone at Wammy's House panted to become the next L, instead of becoming a famed detective themselves, making a name of their own. Well, Yagami Raito didn't accept other's leftovers. He was more than capable to make Y greater than L.

"I absolutely agree," said Raito, his voice sounding openly sincere. "That's why I'll do my best in Wammy's House, so that someday you'll choose me." He gazed at the screen, and asked with eagerness, "Tell me, what will I do once I finish my schooling here? I want to be the next L, so if you choose me, will I get to work alongside you, until you decide to retire?"

"I'm afraid not, Andrew-kun," replied the robotic voice calmly. "I don't take partners. I work alone. You'll have to build your own life. I suggest that you study Criminology in the best university you can find, and then start your career. You can work for a police department in any country you desire, and become a detective. And someday, if you're still my best option, I'll find you and offer you to become L, when I choose to retire. Though, in the future, it's possible that I might ask you to help me in some aspect of some case, if the need arises. But, in that eventuality, I would never contact you in person. I would have someone telling you what needed to be done or researched."

Raito nodded, happily smiling at the screen, while he seethed inside. That's what L offered to his successor? To wait for decades until the bastard decided that being L bored him, or until the man dropped dead? The man's gall and presumption knew no boundaries!

Regardless, it wasn't as if he cared, he had his own plans for his life. During the years he would spend in Wammy's House he couldn't do much, except learn, study the cases solved by the world's three greatest detectives, try to find out who was Eraldo Coil, and try to figure out as much as he could about L. But most importantly of all, he would use his Y alias to keep sending his untraceable inputs and conclusions about cases to police forces around the world, to build up Y's reputation.

But the most exciting and important part would come later, once he graduated from Wammy's House. Then, he would return to Japan, to finally discover as much as he could about the Red Dragon yakuzas, in order to infiltrate the crime syndicate, using his Kurai persona. At present, there was little he could find out about the mafia, or who was their mysterious boss, since his only resources were the Internet and his hacking abilities, and obviously, the yakuzas kept no information about their organization in online computers. Therefore, he had to do that work in person.

Also, when he went back to Japan, he would be himself; Yagami Raito returning to his natal city to attend university, to become a prestigious law-maker and politician, eventually working for the government, climbing to the highest level of hierarchy. And, perhaps, during his university years, also working for the NPA, so that he could discover the mole, and have his revenge.

Therefore, during his Wammy years, he could only develop his Y persona, and learn and study as much as he could. His real plans would be put into action once he was back in Tokyo. Waiting for a few years didn't bother him, since he was patient, and all best-laid plans needed to be schemed in detail for years – exactly what he was doing and what he would keep doing until he left Wammy's House.

"Andrew-kun is very silent," said the robotic voice, with a hint of assessing curiosity. "I think he's planning what to do with his life. Do you find my plans for you acceptable?"

"Of course," said Raito immediately, snapping out of his scheming thoughts, while he widely grinned at the laptop. "I think I'll take your advice. I'll study Criminology and become a detective in some police force."

"Will you?" interjected the scrambled voice, briefly pausing. "And where would you like to work?"

"Oh, England," replied Raito eagerly, making himself appear like an excited teenager. "I have come to really like it here. Or maybe the US. They have very nasty criminals there, and even higher crime rates than England."

"So Andrew-kun doesn't want to return to Asia – to Japan?"

Raito pierced the screen with his eyes, and said exasperatedly, "I told you that I have never set foot in Japan in my life, or in any other Asian country."

"But Andrew-kun has never told me where he comes from," pointed out the robotic voice, sounding fleetingly petulant and crossed.

"Nor will I," interjected Raito coolly. "You haven't told me anything about yourself, so I don't see why I should. Furthermore, everyone in Wammy's never reveals their past or anything substantial about their origins. It's accepted, and even encouraged. Therefore, I don't see why you expect me to tell you."

"Because I'm interested in you, Andrew-kun," said the scrambled voice, and to Raito it sounded as if the man was pouting with disappointment. "Since you are, at present, the best candidate to succeeded me, I would like to have more information about you."

Raito sweetly smiled at the laptop. "Tell you what, if you want that, then we should meet in person, and trade life histories. Or, if you truly want to know if I'm the best to succeed you, then you should take me to work alongside you, once I graduate."

"I told Andrew-kun that I never show myself to anyone," said the robotic voice, "and that I work alone." It paused, and then added sulkily, "I thought that Andrew-kun had accepted my advice of following a career of his own."

"I have," smoothly lied Raito, warmly smiling at the screen. But he also wanted to know, out of mere curiosity, how much he could get from L. He inched closer to the screen, and gazed directly into the tiny, imbedded camera, while he said in his soft, silky, persuasive voice, "But I admit that I would very much like to work with you. Honestly, L, I think we could make a great team. You have decades of experience, so I could learn a lot from you, and you must admit that I'm bright enough to be of some use to you. Once I leave Wammy's, couldn't I possibly come to work with you? Helping you solve cases? If you truly want to have a good successor, you should train him – you should train me."

There was a brief stretch of quietness, and finally the robotic voice said, sounding curious and amused, "Is that what Andrew-kun would really like? To work directly for me?"

"Yes," said Raito emphatically, gazing into the camera with wide, hopeful eyes. "I could help you a lot, doing the boring research on cases, or whatever stuff you don't like to do yourself. In return, I would learn from you, so once you retired you'd know that you left someone capable behind to assume L's position. I would go to you, once I graduated, if you accept."

"You wouldn't be my partner," interjected the scrambled voice, pausing briefly as if pondering something. "You would work under my orders, Andrew-kun."

"That's acceptable," smoothly lied Raito, staring at the camera with eagerness.

"I'll think about it," said the robotic voice noncommittally. "If you're still the best when you graduate from Wammy's House, then I'll consider it and give you my answer."

"Great," said Raito cheerfully, shooting at the laptop a wide, grateful, warm smile.

Inwardly, he was smirking with triumph. Not that he wanted to work under L, he had his own high-aimed plans, but it was good to know that he could persuade the man to take him under his wing, if he ever had some use for that.

Raito gracefully stood up, checking his wristwatch –which he had come to highly value and cherish, due to its crafty, inconspicuous, hidden tray- and said with feigned, heart-felt regret, "I have to get ready for class, L. But I'm very grateful for this conversation, it has been… illuminating."

"Yes, it has."

Raito pierced the little camera with his eyes, since it had sounded to him that L was smug about something. Nevertheless, he amicably smiled at the laptop, and said warmly, "Good-bye, then. But I hope this isn't our last conversation."

"It possibly is," interjected the robotic voice calmly, "at least, until you graduate, some years from now."

"Okay," said Raito, suffusing his voice with friendliness. "Then I'll shutdown the laptop and I'll take it back to Roger. Is that alright?"

"Yes, do so... Good-bye, Andrew-kun."

Raito nodded, and said warmly, "Good-bye, L."

Charmingly smiling at the camera imbedded in the screen's frame, he swiftly pressed the shutdown button of the laptop. Then, he swiftly went into his bathroom, to go through his morning ablutions before returning the laptop to Roger, while his mind busily raced with all his plans concerning Beyond, Viviane, and his Y persona. But most importantly, he was also reviewing his conversation with L, trying to figure out why the robotic voice had sounded triumphantly smug in the end.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me. I only own this story and make no profit from this.

AN:

Thanks to all of those who reviewed! Though not many people reviewed to answer my question of the previous chapter. Nevertheless, your suggestions have been duly noted!

Enjoy this chappie, and let me know what you think of it! And happy holidays!

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**Chapter 9**

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_September 1__, 2000_

Raito was seated in front of his desk, with his laptop's screen glowing at one side, while he studiously did his homework for his class of 'Psychiatry and Psychology for Criminal Profiling'.

It was three hours past midnight and everyone at Wammy's House was already asleep, with the possible exception of Beyond, who made himself only sleep three or four hours a day. But the older boy hadn't come into his room yet, so Raito deduced that he was engaged in his own late-night study session. He would surely see the Beyond in the morning, after the boy surreptitiously slipped in his bed when he was asleep.

A small smile quirked his lips as he thought about the older boy, while he continued doing his homework. During the last week, after L had found them sharing a bed, Raito had gone forth with his plan of using intimacy to manipulate Beyond. And as he had expected, he was growing to like their shared kisses more and more. He still hadn't slyly asked Beyond any questions about L during their snogging sessions, since that would be too obvious since they had just began their intimacy, but he would start doing it soon. That was the whole point of kissing Beyond, after all.

Nevertheless, he always forced himself to analyze his situation and to admit to himself that kissing Beyond, and being kissed by him, was very pleasurable. He needed to be honest with himself in that regard, in order to never lose his focus and control, so that he could balance those pleasurable moments by spending intimate time with Viviane. So far, it was working.

Every day in which he spend time kissing Beyond, then he would eventually seek out Viviane to kiss her as well. It nullified the pleasure he felt with the older boy, and allowed him to keep a cold and tight grip on his emotions, safely locking them away. Not that he got emotional with Beyond, of course, that was ridiculous; but feeling pleasure was dangerous. Hence, he always made himself kiss and caress Viviane afterwards, so that he could feel again coldly detached and unfeeling.

His plan of using Viviane as a counterbalance worked perfectly, for several reasons.

Firstly, he already saw how she was becoming more attached to him. She hadn't openly expressed it, but he could see that she was indeed deeply in love with him. Thus, he knew that he could persuade her to do anything for him, if the need arose. And that certainly would be useful in the future.

Secondly, they kept their 'relationship' a secret. He had told Viviane that it was imperative to do so, since he feared for her safety if Beyond ever found out that she was his 'girlfriend'. He hadn't needed to say much to convince her, since she had been bitten by Beyond, but he had explained that the older boy was very possessive of him ever since they had become 'friends'. He had told her that he didn't particularly like Beyond, but that there wasn't much that he could do, since the older boy was unstable and deranged, so he thought it best to play along with Beyond's belief that they were 'best friends'.

Thus, he had easily persuaded her to keep their intimate moments to themselves, and to only indulge in them when they were in her room. There no one bothered them, not even Beyond. He suspected that it was because the older boy usually disappeared whenever she was present, surely because Beyond didn't want to be tempted to bite her once more, for it was certain that Roger would send him away if the boy did that again.

Therefore, as much as he indulged in the pleasure of kissing Beyond, tasting the unique sweet and coppery tang of the older boy's mouth, he was always able to keep himself in check. And he was mightily proud and satisfied with how everything was currently working out.

Suddenly, a small window popped and flashed green in his laptop's screen, and Raito pushed his homework a side to check it. He had configured his computer to let him know when someone posted a message in the Ekwok forum he had created at Globalnet. He only hoped it wasn't some idiot asking again if Ekwok was a village in Africa or some such ignorant and inane question_. _

Raito blinked when he read the posted message, and a smirk curled his lips. So L had finally decided to contact Y… the man had taken his sweet time in doing so. Oh, he had been furious at first when L didn't write in the forum, for he knew that the man must have unraveled his message weeks ago. But then he had immediately understood that making Y angry was just what L intended to do. So he had armed himself with patience and indifference while days crept by and L didn't post a message in the forum.

But this was certainly L, and Raito inwardly chuckled with amusement when he read the message again, wondering if the man had been high when choosing the stupid username.

_Misty: I'm also looking for Yolanda. I want to see the pictures of her puppy playing with the snow in Ekwok. I love puppies. I never had one myself, but I still hope that someone will give me a puppy someday. Sleuth, do you like puppies?_

Raito snorted snidely. Either L was high on drugs or the man was simply naturally giddy and childish. Then he narrowed his eyes at the screen. Or L wanted to appear to be that way, so that Y underestimated him…. But honestly, 'Misty' and 'I love puppies'? It was ridiculous and it also belittled the seriousness and importance of L's first direct communication with Y. But, probably, that was L's intention as well; to piss off Y.

He smirked and poised his fingers on the keyboard. If L wanted to play, he would oblige. Though, of course, he couldn't let L know that Y suspected Misty to be L. After all, he had created a crafty little program to constantly change his IP address, permanently looping, so the message of 'Looking for me' had been repeated several times, for anyone who looked for it. He knew that L was trying to locate Y because he had heard Roger's conversation, thus he knew that Matt had been monitoring the IP address.

Therefore, Raito knew that L was looking for Y, but Y had no reason to instantly realize that this was L. After all, there were many people who could want to communicate with Y; police forces to whom he had sent his emails or the other two greatest detectives in the world. As a matter of fact, he felt angry and disappointed that Eraldo Coil hadn't found Ekwok's Forum.

Raito had hoped that the second greatest detective in the world would have also been looking for Y. But none of the messages previously posted in the Forum had used the keyword 'looking', except Misty's message, at present. And he knew, given Misty's childish and playful tone, that this had to be L.

It could only mean that Eraldo Coil wasn't interested in Y or that the detective wasn't as intelligent as he had assumed - if the man hadn't unraveled the message hidden in the locations of Y's IP addresses.

He angrily sighed. Finding Eraldo Coil was much more important to him than playing with L. But it didn't matter, for now, since he would keep trying to figure out who Coil was by studying the man's reports on solved cases. And he would have more clues about the man once he got back to Tokyo and contacted someone in the NPA who had worked under Coil's orders, when his father had led the NPA force to raid the Red Dragon yakuza headquarters. Thus, he accepted that he had to be patient.

Currently, he knew that Eraldo Coil had taken a case on serial murders in Miami. It had been all over the news that the detective was helping the FBI on that case. On the other hand, he knew that L had taken a case in Moscow, about a month ago, and that the man was still currently working to solve it. As for Deneuve, there had been no indications that she had recently taken any case. Nevertheless, he knew that none of those three detectives ever showed themselves in person to the people they worked with, or to anyone else. Obviously, for security reasons, given all the criminals they had caught.

He often fleetingly wondered if any of those detectives flew to the cities in which they took a case... Nevertheless, he would work under the assumption that L was in Moscow, which meant that it was three hours later in the night for L than for him. So he had to be careful of never giving away in which time zone he was in.

He would need to write in the forum at different and sporadic times during his days and nights, so that L could never deduce in which country he was. And he would always post messages that would throw L off his course, so that 'Andrew' would never be suspected of being Y. Though there was little chance of that; Y could be anyone in the world with an interest in criminal investigation.

Satisfied, and with several schemes speeding through his mind, Raito focused back on the task at hand. And while he typed his message, to post it under his username of Sleuth, his lips quirked upwards at the challenge of matching wit against wit with L.

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In his luxurious hotel suite in Moscow, L leaned forward while he precariously balanced himself on the chair. With his legs bent against his chest, he unblinkingly gazed at the file he had been reading about the Miami murders. He briefly glanced at his computer's flat screen, eyeing the window of Ekwok's Forum, wondering when Y would post a reply message. Would the man see it soon, or was the man in some part of the world where it was late at night, and thus, currently sleeping?

L daintily snatched the delicious cherry topping his cup of ice cream, and popped it into his awaiting mouth. He sighed with blissful contentment as he twirled his tongue around the sugary cherry, and went back to read the file on the latest murder in Miami, his mind quickly piecing together the new clues about the serial killer's identity.

He often took several cases at once, using his two other detective personas, so that no one would suspect that L was also Eraldo Coil and Denueve. After all, who would imagine that he would have the time to work on several cases at once? Though it wasn't really a matter of time; his mind simply could easily work in several tracks at once, and he could follow and solve cases simultaneously.

He was currently in Moscow because he always travelled and set up headquarters at the city in which he took the most challenging case. Nevertheless, it was easy for him, with Quillsh's help and technical expertise, to stay in constant communication with the FBI task force working in Miami under his orders – Eraldo Coil's orders.

Suddenly, from the corner of his eyes, he saw something flickering on his flat screen and he immediately put down the file he had been reading. So Y was currently awake? In Moscow, it was six in the morning. Therefore, it could mean that Y was in America, where it was night or late evening, or the man could be in Europe, staying up late at night… or it was day time for Y… Well, there were countless possibilities, and he wouldn't be able to simply deduce where Y was just based on when the man posted messages. Surely Y was sly enough not to reveal, by that means, in which time zone he was in.

L's lips spread into a small grin, while he reread the message.

_Sleuth: I adore puppies too, Misty. And that's a very pretty name, surely matching a very pretty woman. I'm quite bored at present, in my lunch break at work, and chatting with a young woman like yourself will brighten my day. Tell me, Misty, what are you wearing?_

The corner of his lips quirked upwards even further, and L daintily swooped a fingertip along his chocolate and strawberry ice cream, before he stuck it in his mouth. So Y wasn't playing to be a hormonal teenager anymore, like in his first posted message? Though, he didn't believe for a second that Y was some lecherous man looking to have some sex-chat during office hours.

A creepy, little grin curved his lips, and he quickly typed on the keyboard with his index fingers.

_

* * *

_

_Misty: *giggles and blushes* Oh, I cannot tell a stranger that. My mum always tells me that I have to be very careful in chat rooms and forums. There are many evil men out there, according to my momma._

Raito scoffed and rolled his eyes. Was L going to keep that up for long? Things wouldn't get interesting until they admitted that they were Y and L. He widely smirked. Nevertheless, he could play along to get some information out of him, and to barrage L with deceitful clues about Y's identity.

_Sleuth: Your momma is right, Misty. I apologize, I thought you were older, but it's clear to me that you must be a very young girl. Being quite older than yourself, I recommend that you listen to your momma. I have a daughter myself, thus I know what I'm speaking about. There are many ill-intentioned men prowling the web, Misty._

L blinked at the message and shoved his thumb in between his fingers. Y wanted him to believe that he had a daughter? Surely the man wouldn't reveal such information about himself. It was a diversionary tactic meant to make him wonder once again about the man's age.

His lips quirked upwards and he scooped some more ice cream with a sugar-coated cookie and popped it into his mouth, before he daintily typed back.

_Misty: Oh, and how old is your daughter?_

Raito frowned, wondering where L wanted to go with this. Nevertheless, he quickly replied.

_Sleuth: She's fifteen years old, a mischievous and fiery girl who had me wrapped around her little finger the moment she opened her eyes and grabbed my finger with her chubby, tiny hands when she was a baby. _

L grinned widely, feeling a rush of exhilarated expectation. He had the man now. Let's see how Y responded next. Surely the man would see the hidden message.

_Misty: Fifteen! She's the same age as I am. That's awesome! Oh, I wish I could meet her. I have no friends of my own. Everyone thinks I'm an oddball. Oh, if there was only a way in which I could meet her!_

Raito softly chuckled with amusement. He had to admit it, bantering with L was fun. He slightly frowned at that. He shouldn't enjoy this; he couldn't afford to like L. The man was competition, someone he wanted to show up and rid from the title as the best detective in the world. And L had already proved to be someone controlling, manipulative, and sly. The man had, after all, spied on him and Beyond, and then practically ordered him to cease any close relationship with anyone. Though, granted, he didn't particularly have anything against L; his prey was Eraldo Coil – when he found the damned man.

He suppressed his seething hatred of Coil, and focused back on the message. It was clear what L was implying - for them to meet. But it had to be a bluff, since he knew perfectly well that L never revealed himself in person to anyone.

Instantly, he widely smirked while he replied. It was a test. L wanted to see if he was willing to meet him face-to-face, even though the man had no intention of doing so.

_Sleuth: I would be happy to oblige. My daughter always loves to make new friends. I could reward her good grades in school with a trip somewhere. Tell me, where are you, Misty?_

L pressed his thumb against his bottom lip, gazing unblinkingly at his flat screen, while his mind lurched forwards. Obviously Y was willing to play along for as long as he did, but it was time to get to the point. He was 98 certain that Y knew that 'Misty' was someone who had caught Y's 'Looking for me' message. Thus, the man must suspect that 'Misty' was a policeman, detective, or someone in that line of work. Furthermore, he needed to know how much Y was willing to do, and reveal, to satiate his curiosity about who had caught the message hidden in the location of the IP addresses.

A small grin crept on his lips, and he swiftly typed.

_Misty: I'm in Florida. But I have to admit that I'm more interested in meeting you, Sleuth._

Raito smirked and placidly leaned back on his swivel chair. Well, L was finally ready to cut through the crap. He poised his fingers on his keyboard, and he quickly typed and launched the program he had created for this situation. In a few seconds, he had locked down the forum, and he immediately posted another message.

_Sleuth: We can communicate openly now, Misty. From now on, only we will be able to enter this forum. _

_Misty: You have high-skilled hacking abilities, it seems. _

Raito widely smirked. L knew that already, of course, since the man had to know that Y hacked into police mainframes and databases in order to get information to crack cases. Thankfully, he had been very careful in masking his computer skills in Wammy's House. Actually, the only one who knew about his hacking abilities was Beyond, because they always studied together police files and the reports given by L, Coil, and Deneuve. Though, obviously, not even Beyond knew that he was Y. He always sent his emails under the Y alias when he was alone in his room before going to sleep, or when he had a free period while Beyond had classes.

_Sleuth: You must know that already, Misty. Tell me, are you an FBI or Interpol agent?_

_Misty: Is that who you expected to find your message, Y?_

Raito arched an eyebrow in surprise. So L meant serious business if the man was already openly revealing that he knew that 'Sleuth' was Y. He had expected L to dally a while longer before doing that. He frowned in puzzled pensiveness. What did L want to get out of this?

_Sleuth: Possibly. Either you work for some police force or you are a detective yourself._

L's lips curved into a small, nasty grin, and he daintily typed back.

_Misty: Is that what you consider yourself to be – a detective? Tsk, Y. You're nothing but an amateur, trying to play in the big leagues, and you'll repeatedly find yourself outmatched and bested._

Raito flared in anger, but he quickly suppressed it, thinking carefully what to reply to that jibe.

_Sleuth: You're very arrogant and conceited if you think you can best me. I can only gather that you are indeed a detective. _

A small, satisfied smirk spread over L's face, and he decided to push the game a notch higher.

_Misty: I am L. But you must have suspected that already. If you didn't, I find myself very disappointed in Y._

Raito gritted his teeth together, before he instantly replied with supreme impassiveness, making it look as if he was startled, suspicious, and also excitedly pleased.

_Sleuth: Are you really L? I had been hoping, of course, that I would grab your attention… I can't believe that you're truly L. I've wanted to talk to you for so long, to get to know you… You've always been my inspiration. I feel deeply honored. This is amazing! But, how can I really be sure that you are who you claim to be?_

L stared unblinkingly at the screen, nibbling on his thumb while his mind was rushing with sly, pondering thoughts. The man sounded like a worshipful fan; someone who had simply become Y to grab L's attention. But he doubted that. He was 86 percent certain that the man actually thought himself to be a competitor.

His lips quirked upwards, and he swiftly wrote back, in order to test the man further.

_Misty: I am L, and you'll simply have to take my word on it. But as I said, I am in Florida, so perhaps you have a chance to meet me here. I've always wanted to visit Disney World – such a merry place of fantasy. For the sake of keeping my identity a secret, I will be masked with a costume of Goofy – I love that character, he's so cute and funny, don't you think? And you can be Minnie Mouse. We could meet, say, tomorrow?_

Raito's hands balled into fists, blazing with indignant anger. Minnie Mouse – the gall of the man! But immediately, he reread the message again and he burst out laughing. Oh, L was priceless! It was another test, of course, to see if he was willing to meet face-to-face, and also for L to deduce where he was. Nevertheless, he was certain that L was bluffing about the meeting. L wouldn't chance his safety just out of curiosity about Y's identity.

Smirking widely, with both amusement and thrilled enjoyment, he deftly typed on his keyboard.

_Sleuth: I would be ecstatic to meet you, L! And it's wonderful that you're in Florida, since I can take a plane and be there in only an hour and a half. I also live in the US, and I've taken my daughter several times to Disney World. I admit that I've always enjoyed myself as much as she has. So at what time do you want to meet? Oh, and I think I'll be Captain Hook, and you can be Tinkerbell._

A small grin spread on L's face, and he shoved his thumb in between his lips, to smother an amused chuckle. Tinkerbell? He supposed he deserved it for the Minnie Mouse suggestion. And Y had seen through his game. Oh, the man didn't disappoint. Though, did Y truly have a fifteen-year-old daughter? That would make him a man in his mid thirties or forties. No, it was another lie, to throw him off-track; he was 99 percent sure about it.

Regardless, it was time to glean some information about the man's views, and to rile him up.

_Misty: Y wants to dress up as a villain? I would have thought that someone who was working to catch criminals wouldn't choose a villain to masquerade himself. Though, you are a criminal yourself, aren't you, Y? Given the way you illegally hack into police databases. I could easily have you prosecuted for that, Y._

Raito smirked, utterly unfazed, quickly grasping where L wanted to go with this. Well, he would put on a superb performance, as always. And they both knew that L could do nothing to prosecute Y. When he hacked mainframes, he never left any evidence that could be traced back to anyone, and L knew that.

_Sleuth: I've always thought that Captain Hook was vastly misunderstood – the poor man, having to put up with a childish, disrespectful brat as Peter Pan. Since I'm a middle-aged man myself and have a teenage, rebellious daughter, I can sympathize with Hook's annoyance. That's why I like that fictional character. But truly, L, you wound me when you say that I'm a criminal. How else could I try to solve cases if I didn't hack into police mainframes? Regretfully, I don't have your fame or connections, therefore, I try to do my duty to uphold Justice in the ways I can. And since I have a gift in computer skills, and also given that I earn a living with them to sustain my family, they are the only means with which I can help the world. Wouldn't you say that I'm pardoned if what I do serves for the betterment of mankind, to have a crime-free society?_

L gazed unblinkingly at the screen, his mind working fast to unravel the lies from veiled truths. Y earned a living with his computer skills? Was the man a programmer or worked as an obscure hacker for some company, steeling secrets from the competition? Given the man's obvious hacking skills, it wasn't that far-fetched, if Y needed to work to earn a living. Though, admittedly, it could be a blatant lie. Or a truth, to justify the means he used - those at his disposal. And if it was true, Y lost nothing by revealing his line of work, given that there were countless computer programmers in the world. Thus, it wasn't a clue that could help him find out who Y was.

L's lips quirked upwards and he daintily grabbed a spoon in between thumb and index finger, scooping up ice cream and letting it slowly melt in his mouth. Nevertheless, he could never take at face-value the clues that Y so casually dropped. He shouldn't work with assumption that Y was so careless; he shouldn't underestimate the man.

Moreover, what mattered was that Y had delved into the topic he had subtly directed their conversation towards. Though, he was 73 percent certain that the man had followed it knowingly. Yes, both of them wanted to measure up the other's view on Justice.

Feeling a rush of challenge and true enjoyment, his grin spread while he typed his reply. He would answer back using his public L persona facade, and figure out where Y truly stood.

_Misty: I certainly don't believe that your illegal actions are excusable. The end never justifies the means, Y. You should leave matters in the hands of those who have the power and ability to legally catch criminals. The way you perform this hobby of yours is illegal, and your attempts unnecessary. For I am Justice, and need no amateur's help. What I conduct is lawful Justice, and what you do is a crime itself._

Raito dryly chuckled under his breath. What a sly, little hypocrite! L could feed that rubbish to the media and to the gullible, hero-worshipping, worldwide public, but he certainly didn't buy it. He clearly remembered his first conversation with L, on his first day in Wammy's House. The words were branded in his mind, since he had been surprised by them, and since he had inwardly agreed:

'I didn't become L due to any sense of justice. Figuring out difficult cases is my hobby. If you measured good and evil deeds by current laws, I would be responsible for many crimes. That's why I only take cases which pique my interest. It's not justice at all. It's a matter of finding something that challenges me. And if it means being able to clear a case, I don't play fair. I'm a dishonest, cheating human being who hates losing.'

Though, obviously, Y wasn't supposed to know this, so he would play his part. But darn it, he was enjoying this bantering and battle of wits with L too much! And he was speedily growing to like the man more and more.

Raito deeply sighed, with a slight frown on his face. But instantly, he deviously grinned. Well, he supposed that he could afford to like L. He didn't have any bones to pick with him; besting and outsmarting L was simply a challenge, while bringing down and destroying Eraldo Coil was a matter of justified, unmerciful vengeance. Therefore, liking L wouldn't have any consequences for him. Thus, he would allow it to himself.

His grin spread while he typed his reply; he had a rose-tinted-viewed, idealistic, noble character to portray, and it was so much fun - he wondered if L would swallow it. But the opinions he expressed were so unlike his own that he inwardly grimaced. Nevertheless, it was entertaining and challenging to spin the deceitfully open-hearted, persuading, and smooth lies.

_Sleuth: I concur with you, L. You are Justice. I can tell that you are always impartial and that your code of ethics and morals must be outstanding. And I know that you don't need my help, but I feel the duty of doing something to uphold Justice. I would gladly leave it to your proven capable hands, but I can't, since I want to do my best to offer my daughter a better world when she grows up. I don't want her living with the fear that some criminal might rape her in an alley, or with the fear that her father might be mugged and killed just for a few bucks. I don't want her to always look over her shoulder, scared that something bad could happen to her. Don't you understand that what I do is for her?_

Raito paused, thinking quickly, before he added some more.

_Sleuth: Because I believe that if people like us work hard, then we could build an ideal society with very low crime-rates. Where everyone could feel safe and live in peace. I'm sure that this is attainable, L. Therefore, I'll keep working hard for it, but I would never use any means to accomplish it. I agree with you on that. Criminals have to be caught, judged, and sentenced, with fairness and by legal means. Nevertheless, I do no harm when I hack into police mainframes, and I help when I send them my inputs on on-going cases. Perhaps, someday, I'll be able to do it with impeccable and untarnished legal means, like you do. I'll certainly try to do so. But for now, I'll use the harmless means at my disposal. I, Y, won't give up in my goal of creating an ideal society. The same you aim for, L. _

L stared unblinkingly at his screen, nibbling pensively on his thumb, while a slight frown spread on his forehead. Was Y really this naively idealistic? He fleetingly felt disappointed with Y. And there it was again, the mention of the man's alleged daughter.

Granted, his own words had purposely been those of an idealistic, righteous man. And if Y truly had a daughter, then the man's goals, however inanely rose-tinted, were understandable. It seemed that solving cases wasn't a challenging hobby for Y, as it was for him. The man appeared to really take to heart the mission of catching criminals; it seemed that Y was a well-intentioned man who considered it to be a duty.

Or, everything Y had written was simply a lie meant to deceive him. L lips curved into a small grin. Yes, the man could very well have his own brand of Justice, and be manipulative, dishonest, and a cunning cheater, like him. In that case, what were Y's real plans for the future? To become an L, one more worldwide famed detective? Or were Y's schemes more complex, covert, and sly?

Whatever Y's real views and motives, he would certainly play along to try to unravel them. L popped a sugar-coated cherry into his mouth, and his grin spread while he considered the man. Yes, he was 65 percent certain that there was more to Y than it seemed. And he felt a flare of excited thrill at the challenge of figuring out Y.

_Misty: I'm very glad and relieved that you share my opinion about fair and righteous Justice, Y. And I feel that I understand you. You're right, you should try to build a better world for your daughter. I think I could help you with that, if we discussed cases together. What do you say?_

Raito blinked, startled, and then he immediately narrowed his eyes at his laptop's screen. What was L playing at? The man would never offer anyone to discuss and work on cases together. He was certain that L was a self-centered, prideful man who thought that everyone else wasn't up to his level of prodigal genius. Cracking cases was L's entertainment, and he was sure that the man didn't share 'toys' that challenged him, nor would the man share the glory and fame of solving cases.

He leaned back on his swivel chair, deep in thought, trying to see through L's intentions. It was fairly clear that L hadn't bought his lies, at least not completely. Perhaps L was withholding judgment on Y's motives and opinions, until the man had more information. Sharing views on cases would certainly give L information about how he, Y, pieced clues together. On the other hand, he could learn much himself. And it wasn't as if they would ever meet, it could be conducted through the Ekwok Forum. Moreover, he was more than capable of trading inputs on cases with L, while masquerading the way his mind worked, his true brilliancy, and the depth of his deductive skills.

Well, if L wanted to play tougher and more seriously, he was up for it. He widely smirked, and quickly typed his response.

_Sleuth: Wow, I feel deeply honored, L, truly. I cannot express how grateful I am for this amazing chance of helping you with any case you have. I would still send my own inputs to police forces, but I certainly accept your offer of discussing the cases. We can do it right here, in this Forum. _

Raito paused briefly, while he checked his wristwatch. It was already four in the morning, and he needed to get some sleep. His smirk widened further. He would leave L hanging for a few days. It was only fair, since the man had taken more than a month to post a message in the Forum.

_Sleuth: I'm very excited about this, L! But regretfully, my lunch break is over and I have to get back to work. My boss is already giving me the evil-eye. But I'll make sure to study the case you have taken on my free time, and I'll post a message here soon, with my inputs on it. _

L stared at the message, and a sulky expression spread over his features. Just when things were getting more interesting! Or was this simply an-eye-for-an-eye? L slightly scowled with sullen irritation. Yes, he was 97 percent sure that this was Y's payback to him, for not posting a message in a very long while. Y could certainly hold a grudge.

He loaded his spoon with a large scoop of strawberry ice cream, and shoved it into his mouth. Instantly feeling more cheerful and devious, he grinned slyly while he daintily typed his reply.

_Misty: Very well, we'll keep communicating in this Forum. But don't stress yourself, Y. Take all the time you need to carefully study the case. After all, you're just an amateur, you shouldn't overexert your mind trying to solve it. I'm willing to grant you time, since I'm aware that your deductive abilities are vastly inferior to my own. And I wouldn't want you to unnecessarily tax yourself – think of your lovely daughter. _

Raito glared at the message displayed on his laptop's screen. Yes, he was growing to genuinely like L, but the man was still an annoyingly arrogant, superiorly-conceited, and infuriating bastard!

With his lips tightly pressed in a thin line, he typed back dryly.

_Sleuth: Thanks for your concern. It melts my heart, L. Have to get back to work, chat with you soon._

L widely grinned. What a short-temper Y had. Oh, it would be fun to keep riling him up in the future. People with short-fuses were prone to let things slip, after all.

_Misty: Certainly. Enjoy your work, Y._

Raito scoffed, and shutdown his laptop, firmly closing the lid. He pushed L from his thoughts as he got ready for bed. He would deal with the man soon, and he wasn't worried about showing anger or irritation. It would make Y seem more humanly flawed - easily tricked to unwittingly reveal things about himself. And it even distanced Y further from 'Andrew', since he had always been coolly collected and impassive when he had spoken to L as Andrew.

That was his first priority; to never give L any reason to link Andrew to Y. Moreover, it would be easily done since there was little chance of L believing that Andrew had any different goals than other Wammy's students such as Near and Mello. The man would always believe that Andrew simply wanted to take L's mantle. Therefore, like Near and Mello, 'Andrew' didn't have a reason for creating the Y alias.

After brushing his teeth and putting on his pajamas, Raito burrowed under his bed covers, while a small smile played on his lips as his thoughts turned to more pleasurable matters. Beyond would surely slip into his bedroom soon, to lie down on the bed by his side. Regretfully, he would have to pretend to be asleep, but he would certainly pin down Beyond on the bed and kiss him senseless once they woke up in the morning.

He was always inwardly delighted when he could make Beyond respond to his kisses, and he wanted to feel the boy's lips again, with their strawberry-sweet and tangy coppery taste. Sometimes, he couldn't get enough when their mouths locked together, their tongues skillfully battling for dominance. So unlike Viviane, who easily yielded to him.

Instead, Beyond fought back, and their kisses were sometimes rough, other times playful, and other times gentle or fierce and passionate, but they were always consuming. Sometimes, the older boy ended up dominating their kisses, while other times, Raito controlled them. Their dominating natures were evenly matched in their kisses, and, admittedly, he had come to like both ways just as much. It was the continuous and inciting struggle for dominance that challenged him, as only Beyond could do.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me. I only own this story and make no profit from this.

AN:

Hi everyone!

I know it's been ages since I updated this fic, but I suddenly felt an urge to continue this story, with several ideas popping in mind. I'm still more focused on completing my HP fic, but I'm going to try to update chapters for this story in between. Oh, and I'll be speeding up this story a bit. I could write forever what goes on in Wammy's House, but I think the fic will be more interesting once Raito's back in Japan, so there's going to be larger time-skips.

I hope you enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think!

Hugs,

Firephoenix8

**WARNING: Brief slash scene content.**

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**Chapter 10**

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_October 31__, 2000_

L was unblinkingly staring at his computer's flat screen, with a crossed and sulky expression on his face. He was impatient to see if Y would post a message on the Ekwok Forum, since, quite frankly, he had nothing more entertaining to do before Quillish came back. Both he and Y had written back and forth every single day after the first time he had posted a message as Misty. So he hoped that Y wouldn't abandon him this day in particular.

He side-glanced at his disastrous, first-time baking attempt and he pouted sullenly. The chocolate muffin –if it could be considered as such- was a half-baked, almost crude mass of chunky globs of flour, butter, sugar cubes, and overcooked chocolate lumps. Furthermore, it had a lonely birthday candle sliding down along one of the muffin's uneven sides. He had even been desperate enough as to bravely sink his teeth in the muffin, and it wasn't an experience he wanted to repeat. His mouth had been filled by an explosion of flat-tasting flour, salty butter, and bitter, scorched chocolate – and he despised salty and bitter.

He dearly hoped that Quillish would be coming back soon from his flight from Miami. The man had to have arrived to Moscow's airport by now – why was he taking so long? He wanted a decedent, mouth-watering, sugar-coated, chocolate-and-strawberry-loaded birthday cake!

Abruptly, with a 'puff', the muffin deflated and collapsed on itself. L darkly scowled at it, before he pierced his computer's flat screen with an intense, wide gaze. Perhaps he could use the power of his will alone to summon Y to appear in the Forum. The evident irrationality of his thoughts merely told him that he was in a sour, dejected mood. But the truth was that he had become used to chatting with Y every day, and he didn't like it when his challenge and entertainment left him hanging.

Over the last two months their online relationship had slowly changed. He and Y were now in very familiar terms, and L very much enjoyed their bantering, barbed jibes, serious and grave debates, or their occasional irritated and snappy quarrels. Y always appeared to be more mature and older than him, though the man certainly volleyed back in the same manner when L threw at him some childish snipe. Furthermore, their online conversations were something he had come to look forward with anhelation and expectation, since they always ended up engaging in battles of wit and cunningness, with their personalities and wills clashing wonderfully.

It always left L wanting more because he had found in Y someone who could keep up with the fast pace of his thoughts, with his brilliance, and with his deductive skills. And that had never happened to him before. Indeed, he sometimes fleetingly wondered if Y had become not only his intellectual match but also his friend – he had never had a friend before, and the idea strangely appealed to him, quite unexpectedly.

L blinked at the screen, and pressed the pad of his index finger between his parted lips, in pensive wonderment. Indeed, he had never had a friend before, but what he had with Y felt like that, he supposed. He had certainly never found himself intellectually challenged by anyone, or interested in someone because of it.

Moreover, as much as he had tried, he hadn't been able to deduce much about Y's identity. The man kept writing about his work as a computer programmer, about his daughter and about his past, but L never believed half of what the man wrote. It was difficult to discern Y's truths from lies. And even though he had researched countless governmental records on their citizens, he had never found anyone who matched the profile of Y that he had in his mind. He only knew that Y had to be someone inordinately bright and intelligent, with astounding hacking abilities, but that was it.

Given that not many people in the world were as brilliant as himself or had such attuned deductive skills, he had fleetingly considered the possibility that Y had attended Wammy's House. From everyone who had attended or were currently studying in Wammy's House, he had zeroed in his list of Y-suspects on Near, Mello, or Andrew, since only those three boys were prodigal enough to reach Y's deductive skills, matching his own. Nevertheless, it had been a fleeting suspicion he had quickly discarded since none of those boys had any reason to create the Y identity; all of them wanted to become L, after all...

Suddenly, the flat screen of his computer flickered, and L's lips quirk upwards into a small, excited grin when he saw that Y had just posted a message on the Ekwok Forum.

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Raito firmly closed the door behind him, moodily proceeding into his room and flinging himself on the bed. He rested his head under crossed arms and stared up at the ceiling, his mood becoming darker and more sullen as he heard the enthusiastic and cheerful voices of the other students. Laughter and festive cries came as muffled sounds through his closed door, but he could still hear how everyone at Wammy's was excitedly running through the school, celebrating Halloween while crying 'Trick or treat' at anyone they saw, demanding candies and the sort.

The festive, cheerful ambience of the school only served to dampen his own mood, making him more morose and sulky. He hated Halloween, not only because he found it beneath himself to dress up in some ridiculous costume to stuff his mouth with candies, but also because this was the date in which his family had been murdered.

He could hardly believe that only a year had passed since then; he felt it had been ages ago. So much had changed; not only his circumstances but also himself. Today, in particular, he couldn't stop thinking about the life that had been torn away from him. He hadn't been exactly happy back then, but he had been content amidst the gentle warmth of his mother, the mischievous cheerfulness of his little sister, and the stern, disciplinary but also noble presence of his father.

But those kinds of thoughts were exactly what he had locked away from his mind since leaving Tokyo, and he didn't like to rehash old, painful memories. That was why he had enclosed himself in his room, skipping the Halloween dinner party while alleging that he had a headache from too much studying.

Nevertheless, he could still hear the running feet of the children, and he closed his eyes and rolled to a side, wishing that the day would be over soon. At least, he would be undisturbed for a while, since he knew that Matt and Mello were off pranking other students, Near – the only other student beside himself who hadn't dressed up in a costume- was also ignoring the festivities while building a castle of cards in the library, Viviane was with Yori since he had told her that he was taking a nap due to his headache, and Beyond was still in the dinning room. There was no doubt in his mind that Beyond would be looking for him when the older boy realized that he had slipped away from the dinner party, but at least he would have some minutes of solitude before then.

Raito groaned as more joyful shrieks and laughter resounded through the closed door of his bedroom, and he stood up from his bed and gracefully sat down on his swivel chair. It was clear to him that he needed something to distract himself from the festivities outside.

He turned on his laptop and after waiting for a few minutes he logged into the Ekwok Forum. He hoped that L wasn't running around in a costume, wherever the man was. His lips curved into an amused smirk, trying to imagine the best detective in the world dressed as Tinkerbell. Obviously, he had no idea what L looked like, but imaging the man in some ridiculous and humiliating fairy costume significantly uplifted his mood. And he was certainly up to engaging in a barbed bantering with L. Few things entertained him and challenged him as his online chats with L did.

It was peculiar, since in the last few months he was still challenged by Beyond's unexpected and shifty behavior, but L challenged him in a different way. Beyond engaged him in battles of wills, physical domination, and with the constant struggle of trying to understand how the older boy's crazed mind worked.

On the other hand, what he had with L was purely a battle of minds, each trying to outmatch the other, trying to trick the other into revealing something about themselves, and trying to garner who bested whom in regards to solving cases. And that was something that Beyond couldn't give him. He still studied cases with Beyond, but he enjoyed much more discussing with L the cases that the man took. And he had come to realize that L and he often thought in the same wavelength and frequency.

In other words, L stimulated his mind as no one had ever done. And because of it, his online chats with L had become something preciously cherished. Not that he gifted L with anything but his competitive streak, and certainly not with friendship or any other hindering and pathetic emotion. But still, he allowed himself to like the man because he could afford it. After all, his real preys were Eraldo Coil, the mole in the NPA, and the Red Dragon yakuza boss, and L had nothing to do with them.

A small smile of relief quirked his lips when he saw that L had posted a message in the Ekwok Forum, thirty minutes ago. But Raito soon frowned when he read it.

_Misty: Where are you? You haven't posted anything today. Why?_

Well, L was certainly a demanding and controlling little bugger. And the man didn't seem to be in a very good mood either.

Raito smirked while his fingers deftly typed a reply, hoping that the man would see it soon.

_Sleuth: It's Halloween, L. Surely you know this, or are you in a country where it's not celebrated?_

It took only a few seconds for L to reply and Raito smiled with relief and excitement.

_Misty: So that's why you didn't write anything before now? Because you've been celebrating Halloween, Y? _

_Sleuth: Of course, it's a US festivity after all. And I told you already that I live in Atlanta, remember? Just an hour and a half away from Orlando by airplane. I told you that I lived relatively close to Disney World._

_Misty: Yes, that's what you always allege. But I wonder why Y would so freely disclose to me his location._

Raito's smirk widened, and his enjoyment increased while he typed back his response.

_Sleuth: I have no reason to hide my location from you. Even if you know that I live in Atlanta, it would be impossible for you to discover who I am. After all, there are many middle aged men in Atlanta who have a daughter and work as a computer programmer. _

_Misty: I see. And how is your lovely daughter today?_

_Sleuth: Rebellious as any teenage girl these days. Do you know that I actually had to forbid her from going out dressed in leather short pants, thigh-high heeled boots, and a tiny corset? *Sighs* Young girls nowadays have no sense of decorum. I find myself feeling too old today, when my little girl wants to parade around with her friends, looking like a wanton pop idol. In times like these I wish that her mother was around to help me with her. _

L's lips quirked into a half-grin and he pressed his thumb between them. Y was such an accomplished and smooth liar… so much like Andrew-kun… His wide eyes blinked and he pensively stared up at the ceiling, his mind spinning with suspicions.

Yes, given how bright Y seemed to be he could only go back to his earlier suspicions that Near, Mello or Andrew could be Y. And from the three of them he thought that Andrew was the most resourceful, sly, and brilliant one. But, on the other hand, Y's personality didn't match Andrew's. From the two times he had seen and spoken to Andrew through his laptop, the boy had always seemed coldly impassive, polite, and respectful. And he hadn't bought for an instant Andrew-kun's show of vulnerability by expressing abashedly that he longed to have friends. Though, he knew that the boy was still keeping B around him, going against his orders.

He felt a spike of anger and irrational disappointment, but it was quickly suppressed when his mind kept rushing with an avalanche of thoughts. Yes, from everyone he knew, Andrew was the one who had the capacity and abilities to create Y. Andrew-kun's personality didn't match Y's, but that could be on purpose, of course. But on the other hand, he couldn't find a clear motive for Andrew to build the Y persona.

The boy was, after all, attending Wammy's House to have a shot at becoming L's successor. And Andrew had asked him to consider taking him under his wing, once he graduated. Furthermore, Y started sending untraceable emails to police forces around the world almost a year before Roger discovered Andrew in the private British school, and Andrew must have been a twelve year old boy around the time that Y popped into existence. It was improbable that such a young boy could have been attempting to solve cases, primarily because a twelve year old boy would lack the resources and motivation to do so – unless one of the boy's parents had been involved in criminal investigation, and that seemed too coincidental, the probabilities of it too low. Though, he would certainly keep in mind that improbable possibility, just as he kept in mind every other speculation about Andrew's past.

Nevertheless, if Andrew-kun wanted to become L's successor or to work for him once he graduated, then it would go against the boy's ambitions to hide that he was Y. Oh, Andrew could be doing it to engage in some sort of game with him, but, regardless, the boy was too smart to not realize that L would be much more interested in him if he was really Y.

L nibbled gently on his thumb, staring with unblinking eyes at the ceiling. No, Andrew-kun wasn't Y; it was simply a wild suspicion, with only a 5 percent probability of being correct. So he discarded the notion. He left it at the back of his mind, to be perused and considered in the future if he came upon any reason to suspect it again.

He got his mind back on track and daintily used the fingertips of his index fingers to type his reply.

_Misty: It's so unfortunate that Y is a divorced man. But I'm sure he's an excellent father to his daughter. _

Raito frowned at the message. Such an easy acceptance of his lie. Oh, he had told L repeatedly that he was divorced and that his daughter split her months between him and his ex-wife. But L had always tried to trick him into messing up by writing something which contradicted any of his role-playing lies. Thus, the message was alarming due to its accepting simplicity. He wondered what L was really thinking about.

Regardless, he couldn't dawdle for too long. Beyond would surely come into his bedroom soon, so he preferred to steer the conversation towards something more interesting.

_Sleuth: Yes, I think I'm an excellent father, patient and understanding. So much that in a few minutes I'll be driving my daughter to a Halloween party at one of her friend's house. Therefore, I don't have much time to chat with you, L. But I'm surprised that you took the time to post in the Forum. It's obvious that you aren't celebrating Halloween, but shouldn't you be working on your case about the bombings in Moscow? _

_Misty: I see that Y wants to get to the point. _

Raito widely smirked, and quickly typed back.

_Sleuth: I do. You had this case for over two months, don't you have a suspect by now?_

_Misty: Should my suspect be Kolya?_

Raito's smirk turned smug, and he wasn't surprised at all. Of course that L had ordered the police to show him Y's emails, where he clearly pointed at Kolya as the culprit. And it was time to volley back a jibe.

_Sleuth: So Moscow's police force showed you my latest email. Yes, I think the culprit for the school bombings is __Nikolai Fyodor __Derevenko,__ a.k.a. Kolya. I gave Moscow's police force my reasons for it. The man left a message after one of the bombings, saying that he wouldn't stop killing children until the government released Freedom's Fist terrorists from prison. And there were countless of other clues which fit Kolya's profile. I listed them in my email, in case you would like to reread it in order to wizen up. In conclusion, I think the real motive behind Kolya's actions is to free Sofiya Miloslava Novokoff, a.k.a. Mila. Kolya and Mila were partners in terrorist acts several times, according to the records of the Terrorist Unit of the Military Force. I think Kolya is trying to free his lover, L. Don't you? I believe you know it's Kolya as well, but I wonder why you haven't told the police. What's taking you so long, L? I find myself… disappointed._

L blinked at his flat screen, his scowl deepening while he read the posted message. The topic pained him, since every week that passed mounted with more children dying after their schools were targeted, and he felt that he carried the weight of their deaths on his shoulders. It was case which was proving to be affecting him. Moreover, it was a difficult one since he couldn't utilize his usual underhanded ways to attain his objective, given that the Russian authorities had expressly forbidden him from negotiating in any way with the terrorists. And the authorities weren't allowing him to set free Mila for a few days in order to entrap Kolya. He knew that he could persuade her to set up her lover in exchange of her sentence being reduced, but the government didn't want to hear a word about it since they wanted to appear ruthless before the public.

But instead of stabbing his index fingers on his keyboard, to type his reply, he decided to grasp this opportunity to delve into Y's mind, to have an idea of what the man was capable of.

_Misty: I also suspect that it's Kolya, but I don't have evidence enough to convict him for it. What would you suggest I do, Y?_

Raito frowned when he read the message. L directly asking him for advice? That was so unlike the proud man. But there was only one way to reply given the gravity of the case – with honesty, telling L exactly what he would do in his shoes.

_Sleuth: Simple. Koyla has an illegitimate son with Mila. The boy is at a state orphanage, at present, isn't he? Then use the boy, L. I read one of your reports, you have one of Kolya's buddies in your pocket, though you didn't reveal his identity. I'm assuming that the authorities aren't allowing you to use that criminal or Mila, because they don't want to pardon them in any way or promise them immunity or a reduction of sentence. Then the only thing you can do is make Kolya's buddy tell you which school is going to be targeted next. But that won't be enough, because even though you've set up bomb-detectors in every school in Moscow, when the alarms sound, Kolya has always managed to make the bombs detonate by remote control before the anti-bomb squad reaches the school. He has to be observing from a distance, to make sure that the explosion occurs, but the police patrolling the areas have never found him before or after the bombing. And this has already happened three times. Therefore, if you want him to reveal himself, then use his twelve year old son. Kolya's buddy will tell you which school will be targeted next, take the boy to that school on the day the bombing is planned, make the boy stand on a visible spot the moment the bomb-detectors sound the alarm, and then, Kolya will have no choice but to manually override the bombs or see his son die in the explosion. If he steps out of his hiding place to save his son, then you'll have him, and he can be immediately captured by the posted police officers._

After having read Y's suggestion, L stared unblinkingly at his flat screen, feeling a sense of perturbed unease and alarm. Y would put in danger the life of an innocent twelve-year-old boy? He admitted that he himself resorted to unorthodox methods, but never endangering the lives of innocents. He usually risked the lives of reformed criminals who he got to work for him, and even then he always tried his best so that no serious harm came to them. And he realized, for the first time, that Y was or could become a dangerous individual; someone who clearly believed to have the right to play with lives in order to accomplish his aims, no matter how well-intentioned these were.

_Misty: I would never do that, Y. There's no knowing how someone as unstable as Kolya would react if he saw his son at the school, and I would never risk the boy's life in such way. It's clear to me now that you have no sense of morality. You're not fitted to give advice on cases and much less to be a detective, Y. I'll make sure that Moscow's Police Force disregards any suggestion you give them. _

Raito gazed at his laptop's screen disbelievingly, before he felt a surge of infuriated anger swell up in him, his hands clenching into fists, his eyes narrowing. He punched his keyboard with brutal force as he typed his last message to L.

_Sleuth: You're a fool. With my plan, they would be risking the life of one boy in exchange of the lives of all the children in the school. Don't dare spout to me about morality. You're morally gray yourself, aren't you, L? You're a deceiving, cheating human being, your words, not mine. Do as you like, and I'll do as I see fit to see this case solved as soon as possible, and with the least casualties._

L's eyes widened as he repeatedly reread the message, his lips parting in shock, a soft exhalation puffing out. He felt his mind rushing in a turmoil of stunned thoughts, as he slowly punched his keyboard with his index fingers.

_Misty: Andrew-kun?_

Gasping, Raito froze in his seat. How!? Why? He could barely string two coherent thoughts together. But he immediately snapped out of it and frantically reviewed what he had written, to detect what could have possibly given it away. And then he saw his fatal error. L had never written to Y about being a 'deceiving, cheating human being'. L's robotic voice had told him that the first day he had arrived at Wammy's House.

Raito cursed under his breath. He would have never made such a mistake if he hadn't already been affected by the memories of what had happened a year ago exactly on that day. And now, there was no way of fixing his blunder. Whatever he wrote, L wouldn't believe him to be anyone but Andrew. Furthermore, it was clear that the possibility had already entered L's mind if the man had so immediately linked the pieces together.

He anxiously carded his fingers through his hair, before he reminded himself that he could deny it nonetheless. And what did it matter anyway if L knew that Y was him? It changed nothing. He was still going to make Police Forces around the world solicit Y's help, he was still going to make Y more famed than L, and he was still going to dethrone L, Eraldo Coil and Deneuve from their positions as the best detectives in the world. He owed L nothing. Moreover, he was still seething about L's hypocrisy, and about the way the man had so curtly dismissed his suggestion of how to capture Kolya. And going as far as to accuse him of not being fit to be a detective? It was outrageous! His sense of justice was far superior to L's, who evidently didn't have the guts to do what it took to swiftly and ruthlessly apprehend criminals who deserved nothing but death.

How dare L say those things? Raito pounded his fist against his desk, his hazel eyes narrowing with fury. He would show the man exactly who was the best out of the two of them. But, for now, his tactic would be denial.

_Sleuth: Andrew? Who's that? Now I'm supposed to be this Andrew? You should stop trying to pitifully discover my identity, you never will. And I'm sorry that you don't see things my way, L. But it matters little. We'll see whose plan Moscow decides to follow. I must leave now. I have a daughter to take to a Halloween party, after all. _

He didn't even wait for L's reply. He logged out from Ekwok's Forum, and immediately typed an email to Moscow's Police Headquarters and to the Russian Military Forces, the two authorities directly involved in the schools-bombings case. His long fingers flew across his keyboard as he redacted a detailed scheme of how they could capture Kolya by using the terrorist's son. He still believed that it was the most efficient and quick way of capturing the criminal whilst saving countless of lives.

Once he clicked the send button, he shut down his laptop, and sprung to his feet. He immediately checked his wristwatch, and anger rushed through him when he saw how late it was and that Beyond hadn't yet come into his room. Well, he would definitely see what was holding the older boy, he could use some distraction. His online interaction with L had left him seething and he needed to vent out some of it in order to return to his smooth, composed self.

* * *

'Sleuth has logged out' was still blinking on his flat screen when L gazed unblinkingly at the ceiling, perched on his chair, with his legs drawn against his chest. His mind was still rushing with warring thoughts, when he distantly heard the entrance door of his luxurious hotel suite opening. Quillish was back. He heard the man quietly making his way to his rooms, obviously not wanting to disturb him, and he was thankful for it.

He didn't quite know what he felt; disappointment at himself mostly. He had thought about the possibility of Y being Andrew-kun, but he had dismissed it, and he should have detected the signs sooner. The brilliance of mind, the superb deductive skills, the easy way in which Y could convincingly spin any lie imaginable, and the hacking skills which Andrew-kun had undoubtedly also used to manufacture the identities of 'Andrew and Nancy Jones'.

Moreover, on one hand, he was thrilled now that he knew that Y was Andrew-kun. After all, Andrew-kun had started using the Y alias to study and solve cases when he was twelve years old – it was astounding! It only reinforced his conviction that the boy was the best to ever attend Wammy's House, and it clearly indicated that Andrew-kun was both a challenge and a worthy successor, given the boy's brilliant mind.

L's lips quirked into an amused and satisfied grin when he realized how deftly the boy had been fooling him. He had believed Andrew-kun when the boy had vehemently told him that he wanted to be his successor, and all the while, the kid had been Y, already making a name of himself. Indeed, now there was no doubt in his mind that the boy was valuable, and should be kept close by, at Wammy's House. Perhaps the boy would be a worthy addition to his ranks, someday, if he could persuade or manipulate him into accepting to work for him.

Suddenly, he slightly frowned and propped his thumb between his lips, nibbling on it, while his gaze remained fixed on the ceiling. But on the other hand, Andrew-kun's rather radical solution to capture Kolya greatly disturbed him. The way a fourteen year old boy could so ruthlessly suggest that a boy two years younger should be used and risked to capture a dangerous terrorist, even if such criminal was the child's father.

What had made Andrew-kun this way? And more importantly, was it reason enough to be alarmed about what the boy was capable of doing? Was it reason enough to start monitoring him? But, for now, Andrew-kun was just a prodigal orphan attending school. Surely there was no cause for concern. Nevertheless, he would tell Roger to watch the boy more closely. For his part, he was evidently going to tell Moscow's Police Force to disregard all future emails sent by Y. He didn't think that Andrew-kun was ready to involve himself in any case, not with a frame of mind which accepted to put innocent lives in danger.

L's frown deepened as he realized that Andrew-kun's involvement with Beyond could be worsening matters. He wanted Andrew-kun to become a great detective, a positive force in the world. He wanted the boy to take a righteous path, gaining a strong and proper sense of justice and a deeper value for human lives, and Beyond could be affecting the boy negatively.

And Andrew-kun had logged out so suddenly. What was the boy doing now? Was he with B? A scowl spread over his face, yet it quickly turned into a puzzled frown when he felt again an inexplicable twist of anger, much like what he had felt when he had seen Andrew-kun sharing his bed with B. He blinked and dropped his feet to the floor. He didn't understand it and there was only one person to whom he ever went to when he couldn't discern what he was feeling; Quillish. The old man knew him well, more than he did himself when it came to emotions, which he always had some trouble unraveling.

He slowly stood up, slouched and calmly made his way towards the kitchen, marginally cheering up when he heard the unmistakable sounds of Quillish using pans and pots to make something which would surely be sugary and mouth-watering. It seemed that he would have his birthday cake after all!

* * *

Raito reached the door of Beyond's bedroom without any incidents. Children were still running around the corridors in their costumes, shrieking with laughter and playing around, but he hadn't crossed paths with Viviane, thankfully. He was in no mood to play the charming and gallant boyfriend at present, and he didn't want to give any explanations of why he was going into Beyond's room.

Glancing around him, making sure that he wasn't being seen, he slowly opened the door and slipped inside. He instantly spotted Beyond perched on a chair, with that strange posture of his, but he frowned and halted in his tracks when he saw that the boy was once more gazing unblinkingly at an open book spread on the top of the desk. It was the third time that he had snuck into Beyond's bedroom just to find the boy intently staring at a page of that book. When asked, the boy had said that it was his journal, but he found it difficult to believe since he had never seen Beyond write anything on it, the boy simply stared at a mostly blank page. Even from there, he could discern that the page only had about two lines written on it, nothing else.

Suddenly, Beyond snapped his head around, and a toothy grin instantly spread on his face in welcome. Raito merely waited for the boy to safely lock the 'journal' inside his desk's drawer, as usual. Beyond closed the book, and Raito frowned again when he saw the journal's cover; it was all black, with strange white letters printed at the top. The letters weren't from any language he recognized, they actually looked like weird scribblings of some sort. And he also wondered why the boy kept the book under lock-combination if it was just a journal; surely Beyond couldn't be paranoid enough to worry about someone wanting to steal it. Who would? As if the seventeen-year-old boy had anything that interesting to write about his life.

"I was waiting for you in my room," said Raito shortly, when the older boy locked his drawer and slouched towards him. "Why didn't you come?"

Beyond cocked his head to aside, before a crooked smirk spread over his face. "You missed me, Light-kun?"

"Of course not," snapped Raito, shooting him a glare. "But I was expecting you and I don't like to be kept waiting."

"When are you going to stop lying to yourself?" whispered Beyond softly, his tender tone of voice belied by the smug tug of his lips. "If the great Light-kun deigns to come all the way over to my bedroom, seeking me out, it has to be because Light-kun desired my company, wouldn't you say?"

Raito rolled his eyes, before he smirked and commanded curtly, "Come here."

"Oh, is that what we're going to play tonight?" said Beyond airily, taking a step forward to be inches away from him. He bore his crimson-shaded eyes into Raito's, and added in a low purr, "A battle for dominance, is that what you want?"

"There's no question about who is going to dominate who," interjected Raito, scowling at him. "And stop using that ridiculous purring tone of voice, you idiot."

Beyond let out a crowing chortle, evidently amused at his expense, before he ghosted his lips over Raito's, and whispered mischievously, "But it makes you shiver every time I use it and I like to see you all hot and bothered."

"I don't shiver," said Raito flatly, huffing when Beyond pulled away just when he was about to lock his mouth with his.

"Admit that you came here because you missed me," said Beyond quietly, grasping Raito's chin and tilting it up so that their gazes met. "Admit it or there won't be any kisses, Light-kun."

Raito widely smirked at him. "I admit nothing. You'll respond to me anyway, so there's no need for me to tell lies."

And before he allowed Beyond to say another word, he pushed him to the bed and landed on top of him, quickly pinning the older boy's wrist against the pillow. The older boy bucked and tried to throw him off, but Raito tightened his clutch on the boy, making Beyond wince during his struggles. Abruptly, Raito felt a hardness pressing against his own tightening groin, and Beyond let out a crowing bout of laughter.

"Someone is excited," said Beyond in a sing-song, peering up at him with those crimson-shaded eyes, as a twisted smirk curled his lips. "Light-kun is aroused, aroused, aroused-"

"Baka, you are annoying," snapped Raito, shooting him a glare, before he leaned down and captured the boy's lips with his.

Immediately, Beyond stilled under him, a groan meshing in their locked mouths while he deepened their kiss. As their tongues ravenously battled for dominance, Raito felt that strange sensation crawling up inside him again; a hotness, a feverish desire, a relentless tightening in his groin, while his mind seemed to turn mushy and contently languid. He felt a sharp pain cutting through his lower lip, but he didn't loosen the hungry kiss. Beyond often bit his lip, and he wasn't about to stop because of it. Beyond now had his eyes closed, but Raito still intently stared at the writhing boy under him as he focused in delving his tongue into the boy's warm, wet cavern; there was the coopery tang of blood in their kiss now, meshed with Beyond's sweet taste. It felt intoxicating and he felt his own arousal spiraling, while he rubbed their lower bodies together and inadvertently loosened his grasp on the boy's wrist.

Suddenly, before he knew it, he was flipped over, and Beyond had him trapped underneath him. The older boy shot him a smug, crooked smirk, and before he could even blink, his shirt was ripped open and teeth sank into the crook of his neck.

Raito howled with fury, throwing a punch at the boy's face, as he bit out, "I told you never to leave any marks on my body-"

But he was silenced instantly when Beyond meshed his blood-stained lips with his, having quickly captured Raito's fist and slammed it against the mattress.

"It's my claim over you, Light-kun," murmured Beyond joyfully, lapping the blood trickling from Raito's neck before he delved into the kiss once more.

Seething, Raito was about to throw him off and beat him to a pulp, when he felt fingers deftly unbuttoning his trousers, sliding under the waistband of his boxers to grasp his arousal. Raito's eyes flew wide open, gasping at the sensation, and he saw Beyond looming over him, intently staring at him with darkening crimson-shaded eyes and a smug, toothy grin on his face.

"You look so beautiful like this, Light-kun," hummed Beyond contently, as he slowly fisted Raito's erection.

Raito felt his legs jerking and his eyes rolling upwards, a groan of pleasure escaping his abused lips as his arousal filled and hardened further in Beyond's pumping hand. He had never felt something like this before. He felt pleasure rolling through his body, hotness scorching his skin, a kind of foggy dizziness encompassing his swirling mind, while Beyond's panted breath warmly brushed his neck, as the older boy bucked and rubbed his clothed hardness against his thigh.

Beyond's breathing became heavy, the crimson-shaded eyes half-lidded and glazed over, as the boy's thrusts against Raito's thigh became rushed and more frantic, the hand pumping his arousal speeding. And Raito could do nothing but allow himself to momentarily enjoy the experience. Without even thinking, he entwined his arms around Beyond's neck, pulling the boy closer to him, locking their mouths together once more to smother Beyond's hot breath in his. The kiss was ravenous, hungry and passionate, and he felt as if he was being sucked in into a spiraling whirlwind of uncontrolled desire. The hand fisting his arousal tightened and mercilessly pumped faster, and suddenly, he stifled a moan when he felt an explosion thundering from his groin throughout every fiber in his body. A wetness spread inside his boxers, and he shuddered in mindless ecstasy as he rode the waves of pleasure which sizzled through him. With a cry, Beyond gasped out his name, the boy writhing and buckling before he collapsed on top of Raito, wrapping his arms tightly around him, panting heavily whilst tenderly nuzzling his face into Raito's neck.

As soon as he gathered back his wits, Raito unceremoniously shoved the older boy away from him. He jumped to his feet with a grunt, grimacing when he saw the mess in his pants. He shot the older boy a glance, and saw Beyond languidly and placidly spreading on the bed, with a dopey, content grin on his face, the half-lidded eyes observing him.

"You liked that, Light-kun," said Beyond, his lips now curling into a self-satisfied smirk, "and there's much more we can do."

"Hn," grunted Raito, shooting him a glare. "I think not."

"You'll change your mind soon," said Beyond in a sing-song, as Raito swiftly made his way to the bathroom to tidy up. "And I'll get you to admit that you like me, like me, like me-"

Raito slammed the door shut behind him, muffling out Beyond's crows of amused laughter. He was riled up, seething in anger, since he had lost control back there. One thing was to be intimate with Beyond, but another was to allow the other boy to be the dominant one and to truly feel pleasure in what they did. He had lost himself in it, and that was simply something that he couldn't do; that was for lesser beings, not him. Well, it was clear that he would be seeing Viviane after this. He needed to get back his control, balancing what had happened with Beyond by undergoing some distasteful intimacies with his unofficial 'girlfriend'.

Immediately, he squared his shoulders and regained his usual cool composure as he gazed at his reflection on the bathroom's mirror. He touched the tender skin of his neck with a scowl, seeing the bite mark that Beyond had left there. In a few minutes, he had cleaned up, with a large band-aid covering the teeth prints on his neck, his shirt tidily tugged into his pants, his hair neatly groomed, and his stained boxers now inside Beyond's laundry basket – he would get them from the older boy at some other time.

When he went back into the bedroom, he saw that Beyond had changed his clothes, wearing a new set of baggy jeans, though the older boy had discarded his t-shirt and was now bare-chested. Raito didn't allow his gaze to trail over the boy's lean, hard chest. Instead, he sat on the edge of the bed, far away from the other boy, and simply gazed at him in musing silence.

Beyond unblinkingly stared back at him, before he sat on his haunches to lean forward as he whispered into Raito's ear, "I made you feel pleasure, Light-kun, admit it."

"So what?" said Raito nonchalantly, crossing his arms over his chest. "It means nothing."

Beyond narrowed his eyes at him, and said quietly, "It means that we're more than friends-"

"More than friends?" scoffed Raito, arching an eyebrow. "We're not even friends, Beyond. We're schoolmates, acquaintances, at best."

Abruptly, Beyond tightly grasped Raito's chin, and groused out, "I'm getting tired of your attitude, Light-kun. What are you afraid of-"

"I'm not afraid of anything," said Raito sharply, wrenching free from the older boy's clutch. "And I don't force you to be with me, do I? If you don't like how I treat you, then you're free to be on your own." He rolled his eyes, and casually leaned down on the bed, propping himself up on his elbows, as he shot the boy a mocking glance. "You're worse than a woman, always demanding to know what I feel for you. It's so pathetic. Pitiful, really."

A hurt and angered expression flickered across Beyond's face, before he shook his head, letting out a bout of chortles, which sounded slightly deranged to Raito's ears. But there was nothing new there, he had become used the older boy's crazed antics. Raito merely observed him with a nonchalant expression on his face, and an arched eyebrow.

When Beyond's laughter subsided, the older boy leaned by Raito's side, holding his head up in a hand, as he pierced his crimson-shaded eyes into Raito's, and said quietly, "Something is up with you. You've been in a strange mood today." He gaze turned gauging, and he added softly, "Did it happen during Halloween?"

"Did what happen?" said Raito coolly.

"Did Sayu die on this date?" pressed on Beyond, intently staring at him. "You never told me how your sister died, or what happened to your parents."

Raito momentarily stiffened, before he pulled a blank and unfazed expression over his features. "Nor will I ever tell you." He scoffed, and added pointedly, "You have never told me anything about your past, either."

"Do you want to know?" asked Beyond, a grin breaking in his face, his eyes lighting up.

Raito glanced at him, shrugging his shoulders. "Sure, why not." He narrowed his eyes at him, and said sharply, "It doesn't mean that I'm truly interested in you or anything of the sort."

"Of course," interjected Beyond, his grin widening. "You're just curious."

"Exactly," said Raito curtly.

Beyond's grin turned into a crooked smirk, and the older boy jumped to his feet, pulling Raito up as well, and crushing him to his chest as he started swirling around the room, forcing Raito to join in a dance, as he joyfully sang, "_Fly me to the moon, let me play among the stars, let me see what spring is like on a Jupiter and Mars…"_

"Baka, what are you doing?" snapped Raito, trying to disengage himself from the arms tightly wrapped around his waist.

Beyond toothily grinned at him, forcing him into a swirl, as he continued signing, "_In other words, hold my hand… In other words, baby, kiss me… Fill my heart with song and let me sing forever more…" _He trailed a finger along Raito's cheek, lowering his voice, boring his eyes into his. _"You are all I long for, all I worship and adore…"_

Raito finally broke free, shooting the older boy an irritated scowl as he rearranged his disheveled clothes once again. "What-"

"That was the song that was playing in my mum's apartment," said Beyond with a shrug, letting go of Raito to sit back on the bed, "when I found her dead body."

Raito stared at him. "Oh." Shooting the older boy a frown, he sat by his side, and said quietly, "So what happened? I thought you were an orphan, like everyone else here."

"I am, now," said Beyond crookedly smirking, leaning against the headboard of the bed, patting the place by his side and gazing expectantly at Raito.

Raito glanced at the place offered, and when he didn't move an inch, Beyond shot him a toothy, lopsided grin, and spread his legs open, as he purred, "Or you can sit between my legs, while I tell you my story."

Raito softly snorted, and simply sat Indian-style in front of the boy. "Well?"

Beyond sighed with disappointment, before he stared unblinkingly at him, and said quietly, "A few years ago, when I was thirteen, I left the school." He shot him a large grin. "Well, I actually escaped. I was gone for two weeks before they found me again. I left because I wanted to find my parents. One of the few things I knew was that my mum had left me by the stairs of St. Theresa's Church, in London. You see, I was raised in an orphanage that I later discovered to be administered by St. Theresa's clergy. I knew that my mum had left me at the doorstep of the Church when I was a baby because one of the nuns of the orphanage told me this when I was five years old, just before Watari picked me up and brought me here-"

"Watari?" interrupted Raito, his eyebrows shooting upwards. "Isn't that-"

"Yes, he's the man that travels with L," said Beyond, nodding at him, a hint of anger flickering in his eyes. He crossed his arms over his bare chest, and bit out, "The old man is like L's father. He has never cared for anyone but L." He scoffed, and added snidely, "And L would be completely lost without Watari. The man does everything for him." He pierced Raito with his eyes, a crooked smirk curving his lips. "Watari is simply an alias created for the public and the media. His real name is Quillish Wammy-"

"The founder of this school," breathed out Raito, his hazel eyes widening.

"Correct," said Beyond, smirking broadly.

"I didn't know that they were one and the same," muttered Raito, a thrill of excitement running down his spine. "I saw Watari's name mentioned in L's reports, and I knew that L uses the man as a liaison between Police Forces and himself, but I didn't know Watari's real identity."

"Well, now you do," said Beyond, waving a hand dismissively.

Raito flashed him with a beaming smile. "Yeah, I do. So tell me more. You left the school in search of your parents-"

"Yes," interrupted Beyond quietly, staring down at his hands with a strange frown on his face. "I went to St. Theresa's, I asked around, and they gave me the name my mother had left. I don't know if she had expected her son to find her after so long, but I think she must have wanted to see me, since she left her real name with the nuns of the Church. It made me believe that she hadn't wanted to abandon me, but was perhaps forced by circumstances." He shrugged, and gazed up at Raito. "I never really found out. When I found her she was already dead. You see, I found her address and I picked the lock of her door to get inside her apartment. It was really nice, in an upscale London neighborhood. And when I got inside the flat, that song… Sinatra's song was playing on an antique gramophone." He wryly grinned. "It seems that she had a taste for music, but also for drugs. I found her in her lavish bathroom, overdosed. She was really beautiful, despite the veins that were bulging out in her eyes. Given the amount of cocaine she had sniffed and the numerous empty prescription-drug bottles I found scattered in her bathroom, I think it was suicide." He frowned, and added angrily, "She had been dead for about three days, the place reeked, but none of the neighbors had called in for the police. She wasn't liked. When I asked around, they slammed their doors in my face. One elderly lady took pity of me, I think, because she was the only neighbor who told me what she knew about my mother. The old woman said that they always saw men coming and going from my mum's apartment, and that she was obviously a call-girl. You know, one of those prostitutes who serve the high-classes and who evidently managed to be financially maintained by one of her clients."

"Oh," said Raito quietly, closely observing him. "So you never discovered who your father was, then. It could have been anyone-"

"I did," interrupted Beyond, a wide smirk curling his lips while a fierce, vindictive glow sparked in his eyes. "I found out who my mother's madame was and I… persuade her to tell me everything she knew about my mum. She told me that my mother had become, several years back, the exclusive whore of France's Ambassador in England, and that given my features, I was his bastard son. Though she quite nastily informed me that I wouldn't be welcomed by him and much less acknowledged as his illegitimate son. According to the Madame, abandoning bastard sons of clients was very common and I was no different. My mother had done it once before, as well."

"You have a sibling?" asked Raito, arching an eyebrow.

"Perhaps," said Beyond, his lips quirking. "But that isn't important. I never looked for him or her, and I don't care. I no longer consider that I have any family left."

Raito frowned at him. "But your father, supposedly this Ambassador-"

"He's dead too," interjected Beyond, a strange, satisfied smirk ghosting on his lips. "Oh, I saw him when he was alive, once. I wasn't well received, the man practically kicked me out of his home, and he couldn't have cared less when I told him that my mother was dead." He let out a bout of vicious, crowing chortles. "He slapped a hundred pounds in my hands and made his butler shove me out of the house. And a week after that, the man died. It was all over the news." He shot him a toothy grin. "He died of a… heart-attack."

Something about the older boy's tone of voice, relishing and darkly content, made Raito feel slightly perturbed, a shudder running down his spine.

"That's the end of my tale," said Beyond, crookedly smirking. "Roger found me in London two days before the Ambassador died, and I merely discovered it by watching the news. After that, I never felt like going out again to explore my roots. I had all the answers I was looking for." He pinned him with his crimson-shaded gaze, placidly stretching and leaning back on the bed's headboard. "So what's your story Yagami Raito?"

"I told you to never call me that," interjected Raito sternly, leveling him with a hard gaze. "And I have no story to tell."

Beyond scoffed, before he cocked his head to a side, staring at him with wide, unblinking eyes, as he whispered softly, "I told you mine, Light-kun, it's only fair that you share yours with me. Tell me what happened to Sayu. Tell me what you relive in your nightmares, why you call out her name so guiltily and with such anguish. Someone killed her, right? And you could do nothing to stop it, perhaps because you weren't strong enough-"

"No," snapped Raito incensed, piercing him with a glowering gaze. "It was because I wasn't ruthless enough. Because I miscalculated, because I was still naïve and innocent, and because misguided scruples prevented me from immediately killing her attackers. And that's it. I'm not going to tell you anything more."

"Well, for what it's worth," said Beyond softly, inching his face close to Raito's, "I think the experience changed you for the better. Just like mine made me stronger."

The seventeen-year-old boy tenderly cupped Raito's face, pressing his warm lips against his, before he slowly delved his tongue inside Raito's mouth, wrapping his arms around his waist, pressing them closer together. Raito briefly closed his eyes, leaning into the warm, comforting embrace, a sigh escaping his lips as their tongues rubbed and caressed each other's. That was until he realized what he was doing. Then, he broke from the tender kiss, pushed the other boy away, and rose up to his feet.

"I'm going to sleep," said Raito coolly, his expression closed off, his stance nonchalant. "I'll see you tomorrow during lunch break."

Beyond merely shot him a lopsided grin, gingerly waving a hand at him. And the last thing Raito heard as he left the room and closed the door behind him, was Beyond's voice singing 'Fly me to the moon' in a creepily soft tone, almost as if he was singing a comforting lullaby to himself.

Something softened in Raito's chest, before he ruthlessly pushed that sentiment to a side. And as he made his way to Viviane's room, he began to feel quite satisfied with himself. It was obvious to him that Beyond loosened his tongue after they had their 'intimate' moments; his plan was working. And knowing Watari's real identity was useful, he was certain that he could use it in the future for something. Anything he discovered related to L was well worth spending time with Beyond. Now, he simply had to get rid of the older boy's tantalizing taste from his mouth. And he would improve when kissing Viviane, he would find the way of not imagining Beyond's face and the feel of the boy's body when he forced himself to act passionately with the girl.

* * *

Quillish was fondly observing the young man before him, a small smile tugging his lips as he watched how the world's most famed detective eagerly attacked the piece of cake in front of him. He had reported to L all the news concerning the Miami case, seeing how the young man's prodigal mind absorbed the information, undoubtedly piecing the bits of newly discovered clues and coming with more evidence against their suspect. Then, after he had served the large chocolate-and-strawberry cake he had cooked, he had heard from L what was now troubling the young man.

He had understood immediately, and felt a bit troubled himself. Nonetheless, he was glad that the young man he considered a son had finally met someone who interested, challenged, and matched him, and who, evidently, spurred some emotions in the famed detective. It didn't surprise him that L couldn't discern the cause or nature of those emotions, but he had decided that the boy –for L was still a boy in his eyes- would have to figure it out for himself. He would simply nudge him in the right direction.

Moreover, as much as he wished to warmly embrace the young man and to congratulate him for his birthday, he didn't. They always maintained a formal distance between them, and he almost never openly showed his affection for the young man, since he knew that L would feel uncomfortable. Nevertheless, he knew that L was aware of his fondness and fatherly love for him. Therefore, he had no need of displaying anything but patience as he observed how the young man decided to finally voice his question.

L daintily swooped down a spoon, loading it with another large bit of cake, and he swiftly popped open his mouth to welcome the sugary, spongy morsel. With a contented sigh, at last feeling his tummy pleasantly full, while his pupils dilated with the onslaught of sugar rushing through his veins, he settled the spoon on the kitchen's counter.

"So why do I feel anger, Watari?" said L, gazing unblinkingly at the ceiling, a puzzled frown marring his smooth forehead.

"What is it that you don't like?" asked Quillish calmly. "That Andrew is Y or that the boy is obviously spending so much time with Beyond?"

L blinked, and momentarily glanced at him, before he gently nibbled on his thumb. "I don't mind that Andrew-kun is Y. I'm glad, because it indicates that the boy shows promise. And Y isn't competition, yet. Though it's logical to assume that Andrew-kun will still use his Y alias to make a name of himself, and perhaps someday Y will be as famed as I am. It would be fun, it would be a challenge. The only reason why this could worry me is because Andrew-kun doesn't seem to have solid moral values…"

Quillish nodded, yet remained silent as he waited for the young man to reach the real issue. He had been a bit troubled when L had told him about Y's –or should he say, Andrew's- proposed plan to deal with Moscow's case. But, as he had told L, the boy was still young and only needed some guidance. He couldn't imagine a boy like Andrew being a threat, though he knew that L was worried nonetheless.

Despite that he knew that L had only become a detective because the young man needed to find something which challenged his unparalleled mind, he also knew that L had a strong sense of justice and that he had taken that line of work because he wanted to put his brilliance to good use, in betterment of the world. There was an intrinsic goodness in L and the young man still held an innocence about him, which Quillish was thankful for, though it baffled him given the things that L was daily confronted with in his work.

"… I think I'm angry because, according to Roger, Andrew-kun is still spending time with B," concluded L, his frown deepening. "And B is a bad influence on Andrew-kun."

Quillish quietly sighed, knowing what L thought of the other boy. It still pained him, since, admittedly, he hadn't done as much as he could for Beyond, and he had wished that L and the boy would have form some ties. Perhaps it was time to readdress the issue they had discussed so long ago.

"I believe that Beyond is simply trying to get your attention once more," he said quietly. "He has always wished to be included in your life, L, ever since you met him all those years ago and he discovered that you were his older brother."

"I gave him a chance, Watari," interjected L, piercing him with his eyes. "Since my first meeting with him, I knew what he was. Nonetheless, I met him again, when he asked it. And he simply wanted to tell me what he had discovered about the identities of our biological parents. I was never interested in my progenitors. I have you. But he went through with it, and when he told me, he expected me to be happy to know about the Ambassador's death. He gloated about how lucky we were that our 'father' got what he deserved. And it was in his eyes – he's a killer."

"The Ambassador's demise was due to natural causes," pointed out Quillish. "You took over the investigation demanded by his wife, the autopsy was thorough, you supervised it, and there were no indications of any sort of drugs in his blood stream. He died of a natural heart-attack."

"But the Ambassador didn't have any records of heart problems or ailments in his clinical history," said L curtly, absently swooping a fingertip on his piece of cake, then licking it clean. "And my detective instincts are flawless. Even if I don't have the evidence to back up it, I'm never wrong when I suspect someone of committing a crime. And there's no doubt in my mind that B killed the Frenchman. I don't know how, but I hope I'll discover the method he used before he kills again. Because someone like B always kills again, Watari. The only reason the boy is still at school instead of in some juvenile reformatory or mental institution, is because I can't lawfully accuse him of anything. It doesn't matter if he's related to me by blood, he killed once. And because of it, I could never feel any sort of attachment or obligation towards him." He slowly shook his head, and muttered, "The moment I set my eyes on him, I knew what he was. Though, at first, I didn't want to admit it to myself."

"Very well," said Quillish with a soft sigh. "I won't mention this subject again."

L nodded, and gazed unblinkingly at his half-eaten piece of cake. "I would appreciate that."

Quillish started to fix the kitchen, putting the dishes on the sink, arranging pots and pans, but he left L's plate on the counter. When he was done, he glanced over his shoulder, seeing that L still had that troubled and puzzled frown on his face.

A small smile tugged his lips, as he said quietly, "Still wondering about the nature of your anger? It's simple, L. You didn't mind when Roger informed you that Andrew had established a friendship with Mello and Matt, and that he was often seen in the library playing with Near. Yet, it angers you when you hear that the boy is often seen in Beyond's company, and that they are, perhaps, intimately involved. Wouldn't you say that this is very telling?"

He reached L, and placed a hand on his shoulder, making the young man gaze up at him. "I only hope that you'll wait for a few years. Andrew is only fourteen, after all. He's still too young. I also hope that it won't cloud your judgment."

Quillish walked out of the kitchen, leaving the young detective to his own musings, and L merely stared unblinkingly at the old man's retreating back, his mind rushing forth with the implications of the man's words.

Wait a few years – for what? L blinked, wondering about the mysterious little smile that Quillish had shot him. What was Andrew-kun too young for? What could cloud his judgment? Nothing whatsoever clouded his judgment - ever.

He daintily grabbed a strawberry from his plate, about to pop it into his mouth, when his hand froze mid-way, his mouth parting open, agape. Quillish thought that he… It was preposterous! Of course he didn't, he had never had those types of… feelings for anyone. His mind swirled and rushed with countless calculations, delving into exploring and introspective thoughts. At last, he popped the strawberry into his awaiting mouth, and munched it down musingly. As always, he was nothing if not completely sincere and straightforward with himself. And his conclusions were amazingly astounding. Quillish could be right. His anger could be caused by jealousy after all, probably also tinted with possessiveness. Incredible. The only things he had ever felt possessive over were his cases and his food.

L blinked, his eyes widening, a dazed, little smile tugging his lips. Yes, perhaps he did like Andrew-kun _that_ way. He was still stunned by the flabbergasting realization, and he felt a fluttering sensation of excitement tingling in his stomach, and it wasn't hunger, he was sure of that. His little grin widened. Well, wasn't this unexpected event in his life thrilling? He never thought it would happen, and he found himself rather liking it. Oh, of course that he wouldn't allow his judgment to be impaired and that he would be as tough on the boy as ever. But he was L, and he had the right to grasp the one person who seemed to be his match in brilliancy and genius. Furthermore, Quillish was right, he had years in which to weave his web to ensnare Andrew-kun. And in the end, if he still thought that Andrew-kun was worthy, then he would have him. Nothing would affect his work, after all, so he could indulge in attempting to have some sort of personal relationship. It would be a challenge, as well! The type of challenge he had never expected to want, but which seemed exciting given its unusualness.

L's grin turned into a devious, little quirk of his lips. The arrogant, narcissistic, deceiving little brat wouldn't know what hit him.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Death Note is not owned by me. I only own this story and make no profit from this.

AN:

Hello everyone! This chapter is, admittedly, quite short. But I hope to post a new one in a few days, to make it up to you.

Also, I would like to know the kind of stuff that you would like to read. Romance, slash, Raito's plots, his schooling, scenes with Matt, Mello and the like, or more of Raito's work as Y? You'll understand more what I mean when you finish reading this chappie. So I'll await for your comments with abated breath! *winks*

Hope you enjoy it!

**Warning: explicit slash scene – brief. **

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****Chapter 11**

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_February 21__, 2001_

It was late evening and Raito and Beyond were all alone in the Gymnasium, sparring with each other, their grunts, groans and barbed, mocking bantering echoing in the domed, vast room of padded floors.

Since the beginning of the new school year, Raito had commenced his new language classes –Russian and Spanish- he was also learning the usual forensic and criminology subjects at a more advanced level, and finally, he and his other two classmates –Viviane and Xavier- had been deemed old enough to be more seriously trained in combat and weapons-mastery, for defensive purposes, of course. Students under fifteen were usually taught light- and medium-contact martial arts, such as basic Karate and Twaekwondo. Those who were fifteen and over, were introduced to full-contact mixed martial arts.

During their new 'gym' classes, their sensei, Mr. Morimoto, had started teaching them the joint-locking methods of Jiu-Jitsu, Judo pinning techniques, the swift dancing-like kicks of Capoeira fighting, and the striking techniques of Kickboxing. The mixed martial arts program they followed during their classes had the triple objective of keeping them fit, of teaching them how to defend themselves and of instilling into their minds the codes of honor which came with each type of martial arts. The latter always bored Raito but he had admittedly become more agile, stronger and fitter during the training.

And not only did he truly enjoy himself, but he had discovered, thanks to their sensei, a new fighting skill which was immensely useful to him, given his goals for the future. It was the Krav Maga, a fighting technique developed by the Israelis in the 1940s, and which utterly appealed to his senses. Its attack and defense maneuvers aimed to neutralize the threat and facilitate rapid and safe escape. These include a variety of fast and fluid crippling attacks to vulnerable body parts through various efficient and often brutal strikes; and there was no code of honor to follow.

The improvised use of any available objects was encouraged, along with exploiting the opponent's vulnerabilities to their extreme, using the most natural, quickest reflexes of the body and changing quickly from defensive into offensive techniques, to respond to an attack with overwhelming force in the quickest time possible and often to fatally incapacitate the enemy.

All in all, it was an eclectic hand-to-hand combat system derived from street-fighting skills, which focused on training combatants in conditions approximating real-life scenarios. It was exactly what he needed to excel in, since it would be highly useful to him once he returned to Japan and infiltrated the Red Dragon yakuza organization, using his Kurai persona.

Therefore, Raito had lately invested some of his spare time to train on his own, and often with the help of Beyond, who had two more years of martial arts training under his belt. His classmates were useless to him, in this respect, since Viviane was agile but lacked strength, and Xavier all together disliked any type of physical exertion. Xavier was a typical bookworm and solitary individual who hardly said a word to anyone and who always groaned when they had to undergo their 'gym' classes.

Apart from being taught mixed martial arts, he and his classmates had also been granted permission to learn how to wield weapons –again, under the tacit understanding that it was only taught to them for defensive purposes. The shooting gallery next to the Gymnasium was usual used by the older students of Wammy's House, always under the supervision of an adult. Viviane, Xavier and he had started learning point shooting, which relied on muscle memory to more effectively utilize a firearm in a variety of real-life threatening situations, much the way an iaidoka would master movements with their sword.

The first time that their teacher had handed a blank-firing gun to him, Raito had been barely able to repress a shudder, since his mind had been instantly flooded by the memories of that fatal night in which his family had been murdered. Nevertheless, clenching his teeth, he had forced himself to cock the gun and learn how to aim and shoot properly.

Personally killing someone in cold-blood was highly distasteful to him, but he had accepted the challenge heads-on and he had learned how to shed the last remnants of the noble scruples instilled in him by his father. After all, he needed to learn how to shoot for his plans, and he always reminded himself that he would never become a killer, no matter what he did, since he would only kill those who deserved it. Namely, the Red Dragon yakuzas and the mole, in revenge and also to rid the rotten world from some of its filth. Thus, it wouldn't be killing, but cleansing, in the name of Justice and rightful retribution.

Raito swiftly swerved to a side when Beyond shot a high kick aimed at his head, and he quickly crouched and flung out a leg in a sweeping motion, hitting the older boy's ankles and making him topple to the padded floors.

With a crow of laughter, Beyond jumped to his feet again, true enjoyment painted on his face as he toothily grinned at Raito and launched another attack. Beyond was three years older, thus stronger, taller and more skilled, but Raito was more agile, given his leanly muscled, shorter and thinner body, and he was much more of a fast-thinker than the older boy. Beyond depended on his greater strength, and Raito always counteracted by using against him the force the other boy employed in his strikes.

Thus, when Beyond aimed a solid fist to his face, Raito immediately grabbed the boy's arm, swiftly turning around and using the momentum behind the strike to pull Beyond over his back and onto the ground.

Beyond hit the floor with a groan, and Raito immediately lunged forward to incapacitate him in an arm-to-head locking grip. But the older boy counteracted before he could finish, and Beyond's foot kicked him in mid chest, making Raito crash against the wall.

With a grunt, feeling as if all the air had been punched from his lungs, Raito started straightening up. But before he could even blink, Beyond had straddled him, pinning him to the floor with a choke-hold, fingers wrapped around Raito's throat.

"Do you finally yield, Light-kun?" said Beyond in a sing-song, crookedly smirking at him.

"To you?" rasped out Raito, narrowing his hazel eyes at him, bucking up, trying to free his arms from underneath his body. "Never."

Beyond let out an amused crow of chortles, and Raito found his irritation growing as he snapped incensed, "You only win because you're older and therefore stronger. Someday soon I'll best you."

"Probably," said Beyond unconcernedly, a mischievous glint sparkling in his crimson-shaded eyes. "But I know other ways to make you yield to me, Light-kun."

He intently gazed at him, his smirk widening as he clenched his thighs against Raito's waist and imprisoned arms, rubbing his lower body against him. Beyond released his throat to part open Raito's gi white top, and kept sinuously moving against him, adding friction between their clothed groins.

"You bastard," hissed Raito through gritted teeth, doing his best to ignore the heat mounting in his body, as he tried to dislodge him. "This is cheating – get off!"

"Cheating?" purred Beyond, cocking his head to a side as he trailed his fingers along Raito's bared chest. "This is me making you yield to me."

Raito scoffed, and completely stilled as he shot him his most contemptuous sneer. "This is you acting like a mutt in heat. That you manage to arouse me doesn't mean that I yield to you."

"Oh, yes it does, it does, it does," sang Beyond delightedly, letting out a gleeful crow of chuckles as he trailed his hand to Raito's gi drawstring pants. "Because I'm the only one who can do this to you, and you looove it."

Before Raito had a chance to bit out a retort, Beyond smashed his lips against his, pushing his tongue inside as he ravenously explored Raito's mouth. In the next second, Raito felt his pants being pulled down, and suddenly Beyond slipped back to straddle his legs. Finally being able to free his arms, Raito was about to shoot a punch and shove the older boy away from him, when he felt Beyond gripping his hips and something warm and wet trailed along his erection.

Raito's eyes widened, and he snapped his head up to glance down at what the other boy was doing. "What-" He gasped and all thoughts flew from his brain as Beyond's lips wrapped around his arousal, the boy's tongue licking and pushing, the lips encompassing and sucking, making waves of pleasure scorch from Raito's groin, expanding to every single fiber in his body.

With a moan, Raito's head landed back on the padded floor and his eyes closed shut with a volition of their own, his fingers sinking into Beyond's silky mass of black, messy hair. It was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. Beyond and him had done things, of course, but they had never gone this far.

To make matters worse, or better, he couldn't quite think, the older boy seemed to be humming a song and the vibrations made him buck up into that tantalizing, welcoming, hot mouth. Raito's eyes rolled up when Beyond's fingers dug into the smooth flesh of his hips, as the boy sped his action, the head bobbing up and down, the lips tightening around his arousal, the wet, warm mouth taking it all in. Soon, the pleasure heightened to unbearable levels, and Raito's body trembled and bucked as he let out a long, low moan, feeling himself exploding and spilling into the older boy's mouth.

A satisfied, smug chuckle issued from Beyond's lips as he tenderly licked Raito's spent arousal, caressing Raito's heated and blushed cheeks with one hand while he gently tucked him back into his gi pants.

"And now, I've taught you one more thing," said Beyond, sitting up and devilishly grinning at him, as he hummed with contentment whilst licking his lips.

Raito glazed eyes followed every movement of the tip of the boy's tongue trailing along the puffed out lips, still feeling a thrum of lust, desire and pleasure coursing through his body.

"You should reciprocate, Light-kun."

That effectively snapped him out of his daze, and Raito shot straight up, piercing him with narrowed eyes as he said curtly, "If you think I would debase myself by doing that… that demeaning thing, then think again."

"Demeaning?" hissed out Beyond, standing up to face him, narrowing his eyes at him. "You have some very misguided ideas and prejudices if you think that, Ligth-kun. It's not demeaning to do things which gives pleasure to one's partner."

Raito clenched his jaw, and shook his head, while he tied the strings of his pants and fastened his belt around the waist of his gi top. "Look, it's not something I would do, alright? So don't ask it of me."

"I see," said Beyond crisply, tightly grabbing Raito's chin, forcing him to meet his gaze. "And what else won't you do? When we have sex, will you refuse to bottom as well-"

"When?" snapped Raito, wrenching his face free from the boy's grip, angrily narrowing his eyes at him. "You presume too much. We are not 'partners', whatever you believe, and if… if I _deign_ to bed you, take for granted that I will be on top, not you."

Beyond let out a crow of harsh chuckles, before he said mordantly, "Oh, no, it won't work like that, Light-kun. If anything, we'll both take turns. You won't top me if I can't top you."

"I won't ever be the uke!" bit out Raito heatedly. "I have my pride, Beyond!"

"Oh, so I don't?" snarled Beyond, abruptly pushing Raito against the wall, grasping his face again to bore his gaze into his. He frowned, and added softly, "What are you scared of?"

"I'm not scared of anything," spat Raito, aggressively shoving him away to stand up straight, leveling him with a hard gaze. "I simply won't be fucked as if I were a woman. I won't be forced, and I won't be mounted as if I were some bitch, and I'll kill anyone who tries, got it?"

"Forced?" said Beyond quietly, his frown deepening, as he eyed him worriedly. "Who said anything about…" He paused, and intently gazed at him as he whispered softly, "Does this whole fear of yours have anything to do with whatever happened to your family? Was your little sister or your mother rape-"

Raito's hand immediately shot forth, tightly gripping the older boy's throat and squeezing, bringing his face inches away from his, as he hissed out, "Don't you finish that sentence. Don't pry into my life or I'll make you regret it. And I don't have any fears!"

Letting out a sigh, Beyond shook his head, a sad expression crossing his face, as he said in a hoarse, strangled voice, doing nothing to free himself from the grip around his throat, "Why won't you tell me? You can trust me." He pierced him with his eyes, and added with hurt exasperation, "What more do I have to do to convince you of it? I have never told anyone your real name and I would never tell your secrets to a living soul! I only want you to trust me."

Scoffing, Raito released him, taking a step back and quickly forcing himself to gather back his cool, nonchalant composure. He eyed the older boy, and with a mocking smile, he said sweetly, "Trust? I will never trust anyone in my life. So my advice to you is to simply give up."

"I won't," interjected Beyond, gazing at him with wide, unblinking eyes. His expression softened and he trailed his fingertips along Raito's cheek, as he whispered fervently, "You are all I long for, Light-kun. I love you-"

"Please," sneered Raito, shaking his head in snide contempt as he swatted the boy's fingers from his face, "spare me your romantic babblings. You're only humiliating yourself."

Beyond cocked his head to aside, utterly unfazed, a lopsided smile tugging his lips. "Am I, Light-kun? I don't think so. And I don't care whatever hurtful things you say to me because I know you don't mean them. That's the first time I've said that I love you and I'm not ashamed to admit it." His smile turned into an amused, crooked smirk. "I wasn't expecting you to reciprocate, either. I simply wanted you to know."

"Fine," scoffed Raito, rolling his eyes. "Whatever you say."

"You don't believe that I love you?" mumbled Beyond, looking at him confusedly and gauging. Then, his eyes widened and lightened up, as he let out a crow of chuckles. "I do! You must believe me. I love you, I love you, I love you-"

"Alright!" snapped Raito with exasperation, glaring at him. "Just shut up!"

Beyond clamped his mouth close, and toothily grinned at him. "Only if you tell me that you believe me."

"Oh, for heaven's sake," muttered Raito darkly under his breath, carding his finger through his auburn locks of hair.

"Well?" said Beyond quietly, expectantly staring at him with wide eyes.

"Well what?" groused out Raito, shooting him a snide glance. "We've only known each other for a year and I find it very hard to believe that you 'love me'. Besides, even if you do, I couldn't care less. I've always been honest with you in that regard. If you love me, it's your misfortune, not mine."

Beyond's jaw jerkily clenched, and Raito saw the pained hurt flickering in his eyes. And for a flittering moment, he regretted his harsh words, but in the next second he solidly decided that it was indeed the boy's problem. He knew that Beyond was obsessively infatuated with him. What had begun as a game of manipulations had derived into something else for the older boy; he didn't doubt that. But again, it was the boy's problem, not his. He was perfectly satisfied with how things were between them, as long as Beyond didn't press for more.

And of course, as long as the boy didn't insist that there were 'feelings' between them. He couldn't think of anything more pathetic or revolting than that. 'Feelings' and lovey-dovey 'relationships' were for weak-minded people who had the repugnant need to feel loved; it was for lesser beings of limited intellectual capacity, with no ambitions of their own and with nothing better to aim for. It was certainly not something that someone as prodigically brilliant as himself would ever want to consider, and much less experience.

"Why can't you accept-?" whispered Beyond, before he trailed off, slowly shaking his head. "Why must you be so mean to me?" He gazed up at him with large, wide eyes. "Why can't we be together as I want? Why won't you at least allow me to give you pleasure without fighting with me afterwards? And when we have sex…" He shot him a toothy grin. "Because we will, it's only a matter of time before I make you cave in with my unparalleled skills… So when we do, if you say that you don't have any fears, then why won't you at least allow me to take you once, to be on top. Maybe you'll like it, you must at least try-"

"Control," interrupted Raito sharply, leveling him with an impatient scowl, while he fleetingly wondered why, exactly, he was bothering to explain himself to the older boy. "It's a matter of control, Beyond. I won't give another person control over me, whatever shape or form it takes."

A musing frown spread over Beyond's face, before he exclaimed excitedly, "Then I'll find a way in which I can top you without making you feel that you're surrendering control to me!"

Raito made a monumental effort to gather his patience, decided that it was pointless to continue that line of conversation since the boy wouldn't give up –though he would certainly fail- and he grasped the boy's arm and pulled him along as he made his way out of the Gymnasium's facilities.

"It's getting late," he said sternly, "we must get back to the main house." He scrunched his nose, and released Beyond when he approached a small shelf stacked with towels. He hung one around his neck and tossed another to the older boy. "And we need to take a shower before dinner. We smell."

"A shower together?" asked Beyond hopefully, staring at him with wide eyes as he ruffled his messy hair with the small towel.

Raito side-glanced at him, and scoffed, "Of course not, baka."

"I like it when you call me a baka," said Beyond with a chuckle, slouching as he easily caught up with Raito's graceful strides.

"Do you even know what it means?" interjected Raito, shooting him a smirk. "If you knew, you wouldn't like to be called that-"

"Oh, I do know," said Beyond cheerfully. "And I like it because you can only call me that, when we're alone, since I know you're Japanese and all. That's why I like it, because it's exclusively mine. And it's cute."

"Cute?" hissed Raito highly affronted, venomously glaring at him. "It's not 'cute'. And I certainly won't call you a baka again, if that's what you think."

"No, you must!" said Beyond gravely. He toothily grinned at him, and sang joyfully, "Baka, baka, baka… I like it! Baka, baka, baka-"

Halting in mid-step, Raito slapped his hand on Beyond's mouth, glowering at him as he hissed out, "Stop your childish behavior. You know how much it annoys me." He narrowed his eyes at him. "And you always do it on purpose."

He felt a tongue slurping his palm, and he immediately withdrew his hand, knowing that Beyond was seconds from gleefully biting into his skin, as per usual.

With an irritated expression on his face, Raito cleaned his hand with his towel, before he continued on his way towards the school, purposely quickly leaving the other boy behind.

"Will you still call me a baka?" demanded Beyond after him.

"Yes," said Raito tiredly, taking the steps to the school's entrance.

Before he could open the entrance doors, hearing some agitated voices coming from the inside which made him frown, he was halted when Beyond grasped his arm and made him turn around.

"Now what?" said Raito impatiently, glancing down at himself to make sure that his gi outfit was neatly tidy and that everything was in its proper place.

"Look at me," whispered Beyond.

Raito slightly frowned and glanced up, and seeing the older boy intently staring at him, he arched an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"I've been meaning to ask you something," said Beyond quietly, his gaze turning intense as he bore his eyes into his. "I'm turning eighteen this year and I'm graduating on December. I'll be leaving this place and I want you to come with me."

Raito almost gaped at him. But he obviously didn't lose his cool composure, and after a pause of silence, he stared at him and said disdainfully, "You must be joking, Beyond. Why would I ever go with you? I would still have two years to complete before I graduate from Wammy's House-"

"But you don't need to stay for so long," interjected Beyond vehemently, excitingly pulling Raito's arm, bouncing it up and down. "You're the brightest student here, you could study hard in advance and ask to take all the tests sooner and you could graduate by the end of this year-"

"Not even I could cram three years worth of study into one," interrupted Raito, playing along with the boy's proposal just to discern what, exactly, the boy was up to.

"Yes, you could," said Beyond, with a stern nod, "if you used all your spare time for it." His crimson-shade eyes sparkled with enthusiasm, and he added jovially, "Think about it, Light-kun. We could travel all around the world, see places, do whatever you want! I have a load of money in my bank account – I'm rich! And I assure you that we would never want for anything. We could do whatever we wished!"

Arching an eyebrow, Raito said skeptically, "_You_ are rich? How come?"

"I just am," said Beyond, a wide, crooked smirk stretching his lips. "So what do you say?"

"I say that you've lost it," replied Raito nonchalantly, gracefully leaning on the frame of the school's entrance door, stoically gazing at the older boy. "Really, Beyond, what's all this nonsense about-"

"I'm serious," hissed out Beyond, piercing him with a hard gaze. He slouched forward and gently gripped Raito's shoulders to whisper into his ear, "I'm not an idiot, Light-kun. I know you have plans for your future, and I'm telling you that I want to be with you and help you out. I have the money, the resources for it. You think I haven't noticed how you obsessively study the cases taken by not only L and Deneuve, but particularly by Eraldo Coil? Do you think that I don't know that what motivates you is whatever happened to your family, and that it must be somehow related to Coil?"

Raito jerked back, and stared at him with wide eyes. But he quickly pulled himself together, and said calmly, "I don't know what you're talking about-"

"Pretend as much as you like, Light-kun," interjected Beyond, lopsidedly smiling at him. "If you don't want to tell me the whole truth, that's fine. But I can help you. I want to help you! I know you have your plans and I want to be involved, because I don't want to lose you. How much clearer can I be?" He shot him a crooked smirk, and added in a low, smug voice, "And I know Eraldo Coil's real identity. If you accept and come with me, then I'll tell you when I deem that the time is right."

Raito's mind spun with countless thoughts and plots, but he couldn't truly believe that the boy before him knew who Eraldo Coil was. How could he? It could easily be a bluff. Besides, he couldn't just pack up and leave Wammy's House, and then have to put up with Beyond. His plans were his own and there was no place for Beyond in them. It would only extremely complicate matters.

Shaking his head, he cleared his mind, and warmly smiled at the older boy. "If you truly want to help me, then you can tell me now your suspicions regarding Coil's identity."

"It isn't a suspicion," said Beyond airily, "but a known fact to me."

"Really?" said Raito smoothly. "Pray tell, how did you become the only person in the world who knows Coil's real identity?"

"I have my ways, Light-kun," replied Beyond loftily, shooting him a crooked smirk. "But I will only tell you if you come with me." He gazed at him with wide, expectant eyes. "So, will you?"

Raito regarded him in silence, and finally said with his best, soft voice, "Thanks for the offer, Beyond. I'll think about it."

"Will you, truly?" breathed out Beyond, his breathing becoming louder in anticipation.

"Of course I will," said Raito gently, beaming a warm smile at him.

A joyous, lopsided grin spread over Beyond's features. "Great!" He licked his lips, and inched his face closer to his, as he murmured, "Kiss me."

"Only if you beg," said Raito, widely smirking.

Beyond darkly scowled at him, before he let out a crow of chortles and said with a mockingly whiny voice, "Pretty please?"

Swallowing a chuckle of amusement, Raito sternly gazed at him, and bit out sharply, "You wouldn't convince the most needy person on the planet like that. Utterly appalling." He pulled a long-suffering expression his face, and added in a reluctant tone of voice, "But I guess that I can't expect much more from you, so I'll comply – this time. And be thankful that I'm in a magnanimous mood."

Before he gave the other boy time to say something annoying, he quickly grasped Beyond's face in his hands and locked their mouths together, delving his tongue inside. Arms tightly wrapped around his waist as Beyond pressed him closer, they tongues battling together before Raito gained the upper-hand when he bit down on Beyond's, making the other boy let out a startled chuckle which was muffled between their lips. Raito carded his fingers through Beyond's messy hair as he deepened the kiss, slowly and gently exploring every inch of the boy's warm cavern, knowingly making the older boy pant for more.

Finally, he broke the kiss before either of them could get further affected by it, and he stepped back, shooting him a smirk. "There, satisfied?"

Beyond took a deep intake of breath, and shot him a smirk of his own, as he pointed out, "For now."

"I don't know why I put up with you," muttered Raito darkly, feeling a flare of irked annoyance.

"Because you like me," said Beyond in a cheerful sing-song.

"Hn. No comments," grunted Raito, side-glancing at him. "Now, let's get inside. I think something's going on."

Beyond blinked at him, but Raito didn't wait for another second and he swiftly opened the front doors of the school and nonchalantly walked inside.

* * *

Raito strode along a deserted corridor, with Beyond slouchily trailing after him, as he heard muffled, excited or arguing voices coming from some distant part of the school. There were no students or teachers in sight, so it was obvious that everyone was congregated together, and his curiosity couldn't be greater.

Suddenly, a tiny boy hurtled into the hallway, from one of the restrooms, and Raito instantly called out, "You there! What's going on?"

The ten year old boy gasped, looking mortified, and he stuttered, "I needed to- to go. I couldn't hold it in-"

"I'm not asking why you went to the toilet," interrupted Raito with thinly veiled aggravation, wondering if indeed the school was filled with such fools. "I want to know what's happening. Where is everyone?"

"Oh," said the tiny boy, pushing his large, round eyeglasses up his nose. "Everyone's in the TV room, but I didn't get to hear much because I had to leave... er- you know, to the toilet… um…" He nervously peered up at him, and then seemed to gain valor from the patient look that Raito purposely shot him, and he continued with a hint of excitement in his voice, "But it's all over the news. That's why everyone's in there. I was just getting back to watch it. I don't know much, but they caught that terrorist! The Moscow case has been solved." He widely grinned at him. "L did it, surely!"

A surge of anger flared up in him, and Raito didn't waste another second. He broke into a sprint, wanting to watch the news with his own eyes. He could hardly believe it – those idiots! He had spent months trading emails back and forth with the Head of the Moscow Police Department, telling that doddering, old fool exactly how they could trap Kolya by using the man's son, and now, L had solved the case? L, who had dismissed his impeccable plot, hypocritically taking the moral high ground?

Not to mention that two more schools had been bombed in the last months, ever since he had discussed the case with L in the Ekwok Forum. Countless of children had died, all because the Head of the Police Department had said that he needed more time to put into action the plan he had submitted to them, that he needed the permission of several of his superiors in the Russian government.

Moreover, L hadn't posted a single message in the Forum since their argument, and neither had he when he had seen that, of course. And now… and now the idiots had done whatever L had come up with, instead of following his magnificent plan? It had been one of the most important cases in a while, with wide international media coverage and following. And it had been solved thanks to L? Of all the injustices in the world…

When he reached the door of the TV room, Raito forced back all his anger, pulling a nonchalant and calm expression on his face, and he slipped inside. The medium-sized common room was packed with all the students, and he had to politely ask to make his way through towards the front, where a large TV set was indeed televising a news channel.

He finally stood in the front, fleetingly aware that Mello, Matt and Viviane were to his sides and that Beyond had threatened his way through to stand behind him, but no one had taken notice of him. Everyone had their eyes glued to the screen, their loud, excited voices rambling throughout the room.

Raito had to strain his hearing to catch what the news reporter was saying, as images flickered on the screen.

An image of a school building, with masses of children pouring out from the front doors, instantly grabbed by armed policemen heavily protected with anti-bomb squad uniforms.

"… _over sixty children attending this state school were saved today when terrorist Nikolai Fyodor Deverenko was shot down by Moscow's police force… Deverenko, leader of the Freedom's Fist terrorist group, and widely known by his alias Kolya, was the author and executer of the series of bombings which have been plunging Moscow in grief and desperation during the last six months… five schools, mounting to the loss of the lives of over three hundred schoolchildren…"_

Raito froze when a new image flickered across the screen; a still picture, undoubtedly taken by some civilian who had been curiously, and rather morbidly, watching the proceedings from the side lines. It was photo, a bit hazy, of Kolya hugging a small, limp body, with a look of utter desperation and heart-wrenching and crazed grief on his face, the man's body covered in blood from several gunshots to the torso.

"… _an undisclosed source had revealed to the Police Force the next school which was to be targeted… rumors that world-famed detective L was involved have not been confirmed… it is unknown why Deverenko's son was present at the school, and authorities refused to comment on the matter… it is speculated that Deverenko tried to manually override the bombs he had activated when he saw his son amongst the other schoolchildren… the terrorist was shot down immediately after he succeeded deactivating the bombs… the unfortunate death of Deverenko's twelve-year-old son who was caught in the crossfire…"_

"Fucking awesome!" yelled Mello, punching the air with a fist. "They finally brought the fucker down!"

"Oh, how can you say that?" cried Viviane. "That poor, poor boy…"

She gasped, and Raito suddenly found himself being tightly hugged by her, her teary green eyes looking up at him. "You're here, I'm so glad! Isn't this terrible? Of course that I'm glad that they stopped him, but his poor innocent son…"

Raito absently-mindedly nodded, comfortingly patting her shoulder while she kept rambling between sobs, though he didn't hug her back. He could feel Beyond's heated gaze piercing his back, but it wasn't due to any consideration to the boy's feelings that he wasn't showing himself as affectionate towards the girl as he usually was when they were alone. Admittedly, Beyond didn't know that he was seeing her behind his back, and he certainly didn't want to put up with the boy's rants and possessive claims of ownership. Not that he cared about Beyond's feelings, of course. He was simply struck mute, his mind rushing with thousands of thoughts.

He had to admit that the death of Kolya's son did pain him. But above all, it angered him. He hadn't wanted the boy to die if it could be prevented. He valued the life of good people, after all, whatever L thought to the contrary. The little boy had certainly been blameless for his father's actions. And he had included every imaginable contingency scenario in the plan he had submitted, so that Kolya's son would be protected.

A small, dissatisfied frown spread over Raito's face. Indeed, the boy should have been saved by the Police Force. But it was clear that the child had died due to their incompetence and not due to any glitches or failings in his plan. It was easy to deduce that the police had been trigger-happy as soon as they saw Kolya deactivate the bombs, and that they hadn't truly cared if the child was in the man's arms, before they shot him down.

"…_Mr. Borovitch, the Head of Moscow's Police Department, revealed during this evening's press conference that the case had been solved by a detective who goes under the alias of Y..."_

All other thoughts flew from Raito's mind, and he fixedly stared at the screen. But he didn't move an inch, he simply focused on the words coming from the TV set.

"That's him!" gasped out Matt, digging his elbow into Mello's ribs. "That's the guy that L asked me to trace! It was bloody tricky too, the man's damned IP address kept changing and…"

"…_t__he Police Force acted following this unknown detective's detailed instructions…"_

"Who the fuck is he?" snapped Mello indignantly, his voice getting louder and angrier. "And why don't they say anything about L? No way that this frigging Y solved the fucking case and L didn't! And where the hell does he come from? Another detective! Aren't three fucking famous detectives enough, and now another to boot! More frigging competition?"

"…_t__here's a public acclaim in Moscow to know who is this mysterious and erstwhile unheard of new detective, who seems to have gained the fervent gratitude of the Russian people and the hearts of the mothers of the schoolchildren who were saved today..."_

Raito had remained in stoic silence all along, and now he was no longer interested in hearing any more. Not that he could, even if he tried; all the students were now loudly speculating with one another about who Y was, and the how's, and when's, and why's. It was as if rippling waves of voices were battling each other to be heard. Some discontented, some curious, many excited, and all together agitated.

Gleeful joy and a sense of all-encompassing triumph spread throughout him, and he was hard tasked to suppress his victorious, roaring laughter. Of course, he wouldn't outwardly behave so churlishly, so he only allowed an infinitesimal smile to tug his lips.

Without another thought, he swiftly disengaged himself from Viviane's arms, and quietly made his way out of the room, ignoring her calls for him. With his mind spinning, he quickly proceeded towards his rooms. Plots and plans bubbled frenetically in his thoughts, and he knew that he had much to do. This was it, what he had been waiting for – for Y to be known to the world.

At last his hard work was being repaid, at last Y had been publicly acknowledged in solving a case. And damn it, he had saved sixty lives! He was encompassed by a feeling he had never experienced before, caused by the knowledge that he could indeed be a force of change in the world - that he indeed had the capacity of bringing down criminals, that all his skills and brilliance had proven to be unparalleled, and moreover, that people were acclaiming what he had done! The whole of Russia was grateful, as the newscaster had said.

His plan had worked, even though it had cost the life of a boy. He had been right and L had been wrong. He had saved lives! And he would have saved many more if the idiotic Head of the Moscow Police Department had acted sooner. Nevertheless, the crux of the matter was that this was his triumph, not only over L, but over criminals like Kolya - who undoutedly deserved death, and not merely capture, sentencing and the chance to get a parole, as if often happened. Filth had to be ruthlessly disposed of, before they had a chance to cause more pain in the world, and Russia certainly seemed to agree with his views!

This was the beginning of a whole new era for his Y persona. And an ecstatic feeling of immense satisfaction, limitless possibilities, and a sense of overwhelming power swept over him. This was what he had lived for.


End file.
